


It Only Knocks Twice

by Bittereloquence



Series: Turning of the Page [1]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Additional Warnings Apply, All over the place as far as canon ages go, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Star Wars Fusion, I do what I want, M/M, No Beta We Die Like Clones, Second Chances, copious amounts of pining, poor communication skills, some thirst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-01
Updated: 2020-09-21
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:53:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 34,487
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26228242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bittereloquence/pseuds/Bittereloquence
Summary: A decade and three thousand kilometers later every time Cody saw the sun sparking off of that familiar shade of burnished copper, he found his eye drawn to it out of habit alone. He'd spent three long years trying to follow flashes of that bright reddish-gold hair stuffed hastily under a helmet across a battlefield, it was just habit by now.One that wasn’t easily broken even after a decade apparently.Cody caught the flash of bright hair from the corner of his eye but this time, when he turned to look instead of seeing yet another unfamiliar face, his eyes caught in profile a face he hadn’t expected to see ever again.
Relationships: Boil/Waxer (Star Wars), CC-2224 | Cody & Obi-Wan Kenobi, CC-2224 | Cody/Obi-Wan Kenobi, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Ahsoka Tano, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Anakin Skywalker, Other Relationship Tags to Be Added, past-Obi-Wan Kenobi/Satine Kryze
Series: Turning of the Page [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2001472
Comments: 118
Kudos: 345
Collections: Star Wars Fanfiction Discord





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to my utterly self-indulgent modern AU. I felt so awful after that previous fic even my own brain was demanding I write something fluffy and happy to make up for it and this practically flew onto the page. I'm thinking this is going to be 5 chapters long, I've written the first 4 and feel relatively optimistic I'll finish it out this week so I'm going to start posting it. Pretty much the premise is Cody and Obi-Wan met 13 years before during a modern world war between the Republic and the Separatist States. I'm cheating and saying various SW planets are various countries within the Republic or neutral parties depending and I'll fully cop to playing loose and fast with this. Coruscant is the center of the Republic and Republic City is the capital where this fic takes place. The clones are generally part of the extensive Fett clan from Mandalore. Obi-Wan left the army to raise Anakin after his adopted father Qui-Gon was murdered and Ahoksa is the foreign exchange student who is like Anakin and Obi-Wan's feral kid sister. Further details will be explained throughout the course of the fic, please do not take anything seriously because I promise you, I am not.

It was just sheer happenstance that Cody happened to spot him in the crowd. 

A decade and three thousand kilometers later every time Cody saw the sun sparking off of that familiar shade of burnished copper, he found his eye drawn to it out of habit alone. He'd spent three long years trying to follow flashes of that bright reddish-gold hair stuffed hastily under a helmet across a battlefield, it was just habit by now. 

One that wasn’t easily broken even after a decade apparently. 

Cody caught the flash of bright hair from the corner of his eye but this time, when he turned to look instead of seeing yet another unfamiliar face, his eyes caught in profile a face he hadn’t expected to see ever again. 

Maybe it was silly to assume that considering Obi-Wan had said he planned on retiring to Coruscant but there were so many people here, he’d simply never expected to run into him. 

A few years ago, when Cody had gotten leave in county and had gotten enough liquid courage in him courtesy of his squad to feel bold enough to actually reach out, he’d tried to mobile number Obi-Wan had handed out to their squad at the time. 

It had been disconnected and well, that had been as good an answer as he expected he was ever going to get and had closed that particular chapter on his life with a sharp pang of regret. 

Despite promises to keep in touch, between Cody being under communications blackout and then discovering Obi-Wan’s number had been disconnected, he’d had to accept the fact that maybe some relationships just weren’t meant to survive the stress-filled environments of a war-zone where emotions tended to run high and more intensely thanks to the knowledge that you could very well die before the day was out. 

Not that he and Obi-Wan had ever acted upon the attraction that had practically sparked between them like a wildfire. He’d been Cody’s superior officer and that would have been against the regs. That didn’t stop them from striking up a friendship he at least had thought would survive beyond the war. 

A friendship a part of him had secretly and quietly hoped might actually become something else once Obi-Wan’s civilian life had settled down a little bit but had never come to pass. The other man left the military to help raise his adopted brother after their adopted father had died and that had pretty much been the last time Cody had talked to him. There had been a half-hearted attempt at keeping up communication via email but with Cody sometimes deployed for weeks or months at a time with no access to the outside world, even that sporadic communication had trailed off. 

And he’d made his peace with that. 

Or at least, that’s what he’d told himself right up until he caught sight of Obi-Wan yet again. Even now, a decade later with the full, meticulously manicured beard hugging his jaw and a smattering of gray now touching his temples, Cody would have recognized him anywhere.

He felt like someone had sucker-punched him right in the solar plexus as a contradictory wave of emotions struck him. A part of him desperately wanted to call out to the man while a more cautious part said to just let sleeping dogs lie. Hadn't he wasted enough sleepless nights pondering what-ifs when it came to Obi-Wan Kenobi and hadn't he wasted enough years pining after a man that would never be his? 

Sure, he told himself he'd moved on, had dated a string of men over the past few years though none of those relationships had lasted more than a year thanks in part to Cody's career dragging him off to the backwaters of who knew where for sometimes months or an entire year at a time with minimal contact depending on the mission. 

Of course, more than one of his exes had accused him of being incapable of fully committing to their relationship on an emotional level and that the job had been the excuse he clung to like a security blanket.

That one stung more than he was willing to admit because there was an element of truth in that. And it wasn't fair of him to apparently hold every man he tried to date to some impossible benchmark. It wasn't their fault they weren't able to compete with a man he should have given up on years ago. 

After his last painfully polite and amicable breakup, Cody had decided to stop trying and to simply bury himself in his career instead. His perpetual state of bachelorhood had been the subject of much fussing courtesy of his mother and the extended members of his family over the years. 

He couldn’t even use the military as a justifiable excuse because more than a few of his cousins and siblings had joined up as well and some of them had found a way to balance work and private lives. Cody was halfway afraid she and his aunts might one day go through with their threats of finding him some ‘nice boy’ to take out for a ‘nice dinner’ next time he was on leave back home. 

Rex of course found the entire thing both hilarious and pitiable, a sentiment he wasn’t shy about sharing. But then again, he’d had a ring-side seat for the whole shitshow the first time around and as the years passed, the humorous teasing had slowly turned into something more akin to pitying, low-key judgment. 

So finding himself crossing paths with Obi-Wan after a decade was startling to say the least. And despite his probably better judgment cautioning him to keep quiet, Cody couldn’t stop the brash urge to call out to the man all the same even though he inevitably found himself stumbling almost immediately over what to call him.

It felt weird to address him by his former rank but calling him Obi-Wan also felt strangely intimate at the same time. In the end, he opted to go for the more neutral usage of the man’s last name. “Kenobi?” 

For a moment, Cody thought maybe he hadn’t heard him above the hustle and bustle of the street but then the ginger-haired man careened to a stop as his head whipped about to look at him. Surprise shown plainly on the man’s face as he gaped at him for a split-second. But then that surprise morphed into delight and Cody felt that tight knot of _something_ unknowable in his chest melt away. 

“Cody? Is that you?” The other man said with a laugh as he ducked through the crowd to approach the other man. He took in Cody dressed in his civilian digs before his eyes seemed to zero in on the ball-chain where Cody’s dogtags sat buried underneath his shirt. Trust Obi-Wan to not miss the most minute details. Of course, the moment the man reached him, it was obvious he was at a loss as to how to greet Cody. Whether a handshake of a hug was more appropriate for a friend and former subordinate whom he hadn’t seen in over a decade. 

It was a dilemma Cody found himself wrestling with as well because he honestly didn’t know either. Finally though, he settled on thrusting out a hand to the man and Obi-Wan eagerly took him up on the offer by shaking it warmly. His other hand briefly closed around Cody’s wrist and squeezed it as well, almost as if he was trying to sink more meaning into the gesture.

“Sir, it’s good to see you.” Cody said with a broad smile and maybe it was his imagination but he could have sworn there was the briefest flicker of something like disappointment in the man’s eyes but it was gone so quick he was left questioning if he even imagined it. 

“Please, no need for such formality. I haven’t been an officer for over ten years. Just call me Obi-Wan.” 

“Force of habit, sorry. How have you been, Obi-Wan?” Belatedly, Cody realized he was still holding onto the man’s hand and released it with reluctant awkwardness. He tried to pretend like his skin didn’t immediately miss the warmth of the other man’s hand or the fact they weren’t nearly as soft as he’d expected after ten years of being an intellectual or whatever it was that Kenobi was doing these days.

“I’m good, what about yourself? You’re still in, I take it? What brings you to the capital?”

“I have a few days leave before I have to report for duty. Figured I might as well see the sights while I was in the area, and pretend to be a civie for a few days.” 

“You can’t do worse than Republic City if you want to be dazzled and delighted by the sights. But I’ll admit I may be a little bit biased.” Obi-Wan admitted with a note of amusement in his voice. He didn’t press Cody for further details and that was the difference between a civilian and a soldier, even an ex-soldier. Even if op-sec wasn’t nearly as closely guarded as it had been during the war, Obi-Wan respected it enough to let Cody decide how much he was comfortable telling him without prying for more details. 

In a way, it was a relief to see the man hadn’t gone fully native. His inability to discuss his work had created more than its fair share of friction in his interpersonal relationships over the years either with his former relationships or even the few friendships he’d managed to strike up with civilians. 

“What about you? How is Anakin? He must be what?” He had to do some lightning-fast math in his head. “Twenty by now? Twenty-one?”

“Just turned twenty-one. He’s doing very well, giving me plenty of premature gray hairs.” 

“I have some shinies who have given me a few of those myself.” One corner of Cody’s mouth kicked up in a smile and he wanted to be surprised at how easy it felt to just share a commiserating look of amusement with the man and it felt as easy as breathing. After ten years, he’d expected…what? Some awkwardness? 

“Ah to be twenty and feel like you’re bulletproof again.” Kenobi said with a mock-sigh even though he didn’t want that at all. 

“What? Young, dumb, and full of cum? No thank you, I barely survived my early-twenties as it was.”

“ _Cody!_ ” The other man said with a bark of scandalized laughter but the twinkle of amusement in his eyes betrayed him. 

“Sorry, sir.” He said deadpan and had a strange sense of déjà vu. Once upon a time, he’d delighted in trying to make Obi-Wan break character and he would have given his left nut to bring the other man to laughter in those dark and especially brutal days following a particularly bloody conflict. Anything to chase the shadows from the other man’s eyes. By the end, Obi-Wan had been so stressed and strung out from too much adrenaline and not enough restful sleep that he’d barely resembled the man he’d been at the start of the campaign. None of them had.

They’d all been worse for wear, had lost weight and muscle mass thanks to poor rations and too many days of hard marching where they’d been forced to abandon their vehicles in favor of hoofing it over the rough terrain. 

He looked better, even a decade older with laugh lines carved into his face and the distinguished-looking gray in his hair. “I suppose age does have its merits including experience.”

“So they tell me.” Said the professional soldier who was on his way towards hitting his twenty years and was still trying to keep up with kids almost half his age. The sad fact of the matter was, Cody was starting to feel that age difference stretch out like a furthering gulf with each passing year. He had a bum knee that had never quite healed the same from a bad landing he’d suffered from a parachute drop seven years ago, his joints had started to ache during the colder months and he found it a little bit harder to spring out of bed in the morning like he used to. But Cody just wasn’t willing to admit to himself that maybe his days of seeing the action from the front was coming to a close. 

Because the idea of taking a desk job even now made a part of his soul wither up and die. 

“Anakin is doing very well, he’s almost finished his undergraduate degree though he tells me he still wants to join up. We made a deal, he would do his undergraduate and if he was still as eager to join the military afterward then he has my blessing.” 

“It’s not surprising he would want to join up, is it?” Considering both Obi-Wan and his adoptive father had both served, it wasn’t surprising to Cody at least. Admittedly, his own family had a strong military tradition and it was practically a given that a large portion of his brothers and cousins viewed the military as a viable career. Outside of the pride of knowing you were defending your county, the military meant security, a steady paycheck and taught you valuable life-skills you could take with you and apply to civilian life afterward. Kix had served out his contract and had taken advantage of the Republic’s education bill to further his medical training to go to medical school. Or if you were like Cody and Rex, you opted instead to go for a career instead.

“No, I’m not. But I don’t want him to feel like he is _obligated_ to do so. We’re not at war anymore and I want him to feel like he has all of his options available.”

“I’m sure you’ve taken great pains to present them to him, Obi-Wan. But he’s going to have to make his own choices in the end, right?” 

Obi-Wan’s expression softened ever so slightly. “I see your skill at offering timely and sage advice hasn’t dulled in time, Cody.” 

That got a wry sounding chuckle from the younger man. “No, somehow the military has managed to find me a steady supply of wet behind the ears young officers to babysit who constantly need said timely and sage advice,” Cody said deadpan but even now, Obi-Wan knew him well enough to recognize the amusement in the man’s golden brown eyes. 

“Well, we wouldn’t want you to get bored, Cody.” 

“Never a dull day in the military, sir.” That was an abject lie and they both knew it and both men shared a commiserating little smile because ‘hurry up and wait’ had been part of their daily routines back in the war. 

Somewhat guiltily, Obi-Wan glanced down at the well-worn watch strapped to his wrist. “Look, I hate to do this but I have to get going or I’m going to be late.”

Cody couldn’t help the pang of disappointment but logically, he understood Obi-Wan had a life and a job he had to attend to. He might be off-duty but for the other man this was an unexpected interruption of his daily routine. 

“Of course, I wouldn’t want to make you late.”

“Let’s meet up for drinks or dinner though. Do you have plans for tonight or tomorrow?” Obi-Wan quickly suggested and Cody fought back a snort because his evenings had mostly consisted of him down at the pub with the rest of his squad watching Limmie and drinking the terrible pale ale the capital seemed to prefer.

“I think I can manage to squeeze you in.” He drawled ironically. “Either night works for me.” 

Obi-Wan pulled out a beat-up old phone that barely looked like it had smartphone capabilities. Cody couldn’t say he was overly surprised to see the other man had barely joined the technological revolution. There had always been a sort of antiquated quality about the man like he would have been equally happy living in the 1800’s rather than in modern times. “What hotel are you staying at?”

That rather direct question had both of Cody’s eyebrows creeping up ever so slightly and Obi-Wan belatedly realized how that sounded. Even the beard wasn’t enough to fully hide the embarrassed flush that crept over his cheeks. “Trying to navigate public transportation in the capital is a nightmare. I’ll try and find a place close to where you’re staying.” 

Cody found himself unwillingly charmed by the subtle conscientiousness decision on Obi-Wan’s part so he neglected to point out he’d visited Republic city half a dozen times at this point and had a pretty firm grasp of the local public transport system. Instead, he told Obi-Wan the name of the hotel he and his team had opted for near the edges of CoCo town. It was close enough to the touristy spots without being overbearingly expensive and considering they were all special forces operatives, they weren’t exactly worried about the rougher elements that could be a problem after dark in that part of town. 

Thankfully, there hadn’t been any unfortunate incidents or bar fights thus far and Cody was cautiously optimistic they would make it through this libo without any trouble. The last thing he wanted was to give his cousin Fox any more ammo to use against him. 

He and Obi-Wan exchanged mobile numbers as well. “I’ll text you once I’m through for the day?”

“You sure that thing can text?” Cody couldn’t help but tease and that earned him an exasperated look from the other man.

“Yes, I assure you, texting seems to be Anakin’s preferred means of communication these days.”

“That must be the pits.” Cody was all too familiar with that frustration courtesy of his own younger siblings and cousins. He wasn’t nearly as bad with technology as Obi-Wan could be but even he had some trouble making out what they were saying when they started to trot out a string of emoticons and expected him to magically translate just what the hell that was supposed to mean. 

“The absolute worst. Ahsoka harangued me until I got on social media and then expressed her abject disappointment because all I posted was some rather artfully shot pictures of my afternoon tea. She finally washed her hands of me and declared me hopeless.” Obi-Wan admitted with a mischievous gleam in his eyes which said that had probably been his original intent in the first place.

“Ahsoka?”

“She’s the foreign exchange student I’ve been hosting the past two years. It was only supposed to be for one year but she and Anakin are so close I arranged for her to stay another year. At this point, I might have to adopt her lest it breaks both their hearts.” Obi-Wan joked and Cody silently wondered how much truth was in the man’s words because the genuine affection he heard in the man’s voice said there was a lot of love there. “I’ll tell you all about her tonight.”

“Go, we wouldn’t want you to be late.” Cody urged him with a smile and with one final wave, both men broke off and headed off in their separate directions. 

It took Cody almost half a block for the realization of what just happened to sink in. “I’m so screwed.”

Those three words effectively summed up the situation pretty neatly, all things considered. 

Rex was going to absolutely eviscerate him when he found out. And judging by how quickly gossip seemed to travel through the Fett family grapevine, knowing his luck, Fox had probably spotted the entire thing on a security camera somehow and was already blabbing to the rest of the family that Cody had become reacquainted with his former commanding officer and long-time object of his pathetic pining. 

Or knowing his brother, his ‘Cody was doing something dumb’ senses were probably tingling because according to their extended family, they shared a singular brain-cell between them and he always seemed to _know_ his brother was about to do something spectacularly stupid like open himself up all over again to potential heartbreak and regret. 

And then he would probably come all the way from Mandalore to smack him upside the head and call him a thrice-cursed _di’kut_ and Cody couldn’t argue with that one bit.

He’d probably quite honestly deserve that smack and whatever lecture Rex unleashed upon him truth be told. 

Still, he couldn’t find itself in himself to regret calling out to Obi-Wan, not when the other man had looked just as happy to see him as he felt and call him a damned fool but a part of Cody was looking forward to getting to know him all over again. Even if there was no hope of them picking up where they’d left off all those years ago, he’d honestly missed Obi-Wan Kenobi. More than he was willing to admit and if he had to make do with just being his friend, that alone would make it all worth the risk of opening himself up again to the possibility of letting him back into his life, right?

If he kept telling himself that enough, maybe he’d actually believe it too.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter should be titled Obi-Wan tries to unsuccessfully convince everyone that he's not going on a date. POV's on this fic will sort of flip flop between both Cody and Obi-Wan depending on my mood though there may be a random POV shift in later chapters cause well, I'm a hack amateur fanfic writer and I do what I want. I also lied about the chapter count or finishing this fic this week. Apparently these two idiots decided they wanted some actual plot in this fluff fic. It's also growing into a bit of a verse cause I've gotten bit in the ass by the urge to write some side fics for other characters. Note, there will be some clonecest pairings but no one will be related in this fic beyond maybe being super distant cousins or adopted into the huge sprawling mess of the Fett clan. Waxer/Boil will feature in this fic so if that bugs you, I would encourage you to get out now. Sorry, I love my space dads and their adopted daughter Numa.

Obi-Wan stalwartly tried to convince himself he wasn't _nervous_ or anxious about tonight even as he tore off yet another shirt he deemed to be unsuitable and went diving into his closet again in the vain hope of finding something that didn't look horribly outdated or unfashionable. Not that he doubted Cody would even notice or care, mind you, but that's beside the point.

"You're really stressing out about this." Anakin oh so unhelpfully observed from the doorway as he leaned against the door jam and smirked broadly at Obi-Wan's back. "I thought you said this wasn't a date?"

"Wait, Obi-Wan's got a date?" Ahsoka gasped and shoved her way past Anakin so she could plop herself down onto Obi-Wan's bed with all the curiosity of a tooka who had caught sight of a particularly juicy mouse. "I thought he was like a monk or something."

"I can see why you would think that considering I don't think he's gone on a date in like forever," Anakin said, visibly enjoying every second of this.

"It is _not_ a date and even if it was, it's certainly not any of your business if it was." Obi-Wan protested, feeling the need to defend his honor from such unjust accusations.

Ahsoka took a long look at the mess of discarded clothes on Obi-Wan's bed and slanted an amused look in Anakin's direction. The two of them both came to the silent decision to tease the older man shamelessly in the tireless tradition of bratty younger siblings everywhere. "I dunno, it sure seems like a date to me. I don't think I've ever seen you this flustered, Obi-Wan. Who's the lucky gal? Or guy? Anyone we know?"

"He hasn't said yet, which just makes me all the more curious." Anakin quipped. "It's not Satine, is it? I thought you two 'mutually decided' it wasn't going to work out between you two." He even made obnoxious little air quotes to make his point. That was a low blow and they both knew it. 

He and Satine had made a real attempt to make things work between them after Obi-Wan had come home but their wildly different viewpoints on the world, personalities, and her work had finally spelled the end of their romantic relationship. 

They were still friends but had kept things strictly platonic between them but that didn't mean Anakin didn't tease him mercilessly about it. He'd been too young at the time to understand what a shitshow the whole affair had been at the time but it still stung all the same even after all this time.

Obi-Wan knew he had to nip this in the bud right now before they really got rolling. "How's Padmé doing?" He asked mildly as he shot his adopted brother a bland look. Anakin’s mouth shut with an audible click.

"Sh-she's doing fine. Everything's fine between us."

"That's not what I heard," Ahsoka said in a sing-song voice, shamelessly switching sides in favor of teasing Anakin and Obi-Wan bit back a smile at the young man's offended sounding squawk. "I heard you made an ass out of yourself because she partnered up with that Clovis guy."

"You don't know what you're talking about, Snips." Anakin snapped, expression going thunderous as he trotted out that nickname he'd given her in her first week of staying with them.

"Whatever you say, Skyguy." Was her familiar repoiste. "I'm just saying, if you actually grew a pair and maybe told her how you feel, things wouldn’t be so embarrassing. Then again, it wouldn’t be nearly as entertaining for me so feel free to continue on as you’re going.” 

Anakin looked like he was on the verge of exploding and Obi-Wan feared he might need to intervene when the younger man turned on his heel and stalked down the hallway towards his room. Moments later, they heard the familiar slam of his door and the red-haired man shot Ahsoka a chiding look. 

“Must you, my dear?” 

“He’ll get over it.”

“Yes, well, I’m half afraid what he’s going to do to this...Rush? What kind of name is that?”

“Don’t ask me. The guy doesn’t stand a chance either way. Padmé is pretty gone on Skyguy, he just needs to get his act together and actually talk to her. But I feel like communication isn’t exactly the strong suit of either one of you.” 

Out of the mouth of babes as the saying went. 

“Yes, well...perhaps my serial bachelorhood has not been the best example for Anakin on how best to handle romantic relationships.” 

“You think?” Ahsoka drawled, shaking her multicolored braids over her shoulder. “So tell me about this not-date of yours. It’s not her royal highness so who is it?” Ahsoka had only met Satine a handful of times but had made her opinion of the woman abundantly clear. Obi-Wan knew it was pointless to try and belabor the point with her and just let it go with a sigh.

“It’s no one you know. He’s an old friend of mine, back when I was in the service.” It felt a little strange to label Cody as just a friend. There’d been a time when Obi-Wan had quite fervently hoped they could be more for one another. Regulations and wartime had interfered with those plans, unfortunately. When he’d found out his adopted father Qui-Gon had died, the victim of an especially brutal mugging, it had left Obi-Wan with the choice between his duty or seeing to his adopted father’s dying wish to take care of his latest adoptee and in the end, Obi-Wan had chosen Anakin over his career and Cody. 

It wasn’t a decision he regretted exactly despite the rocky and tumultuous start he and Anakin had at the beginning. But he did regret the way things had just sort of trailed off with Cody and that un-finished chapter of his life ate at him. 

“Wow, so it’s been a while since the two of you saw one another then? You don’t really talk about that time of your life, yanno.” Ahsoka pointed out, ever wise beyond her years.

“They aren’t exactly happy memories I’m afraid. The war was going on and there were times there where I didn’t think I was going to make it home alive. Cody made sure that happened. He was the best second in command I could have asked for.” 

Something in his voice must have given him away because Obi-Wan found himself being studied even more closely now by the teenage girl. She knew all about hardship and the horrors the war had caused. Her entire family had been wiped out courtesy of a Separatist attack on her home city but she’d never heard Obi-Wan speak of that time in his life quite so candidly. 

“Sounds like quite a guy.”

“He’s a good man.” It felt inadequate somehow but words escaped the normally eloquent Obi-Wan.

“Which you’re totally going on a not-date with. And totally not stressing about looking great for it.” 

"You're making it sound way worse than it is."

"Uh huh." She managed to pack a lot of sarcasm in that noncommittal noise and it was obvious she'd been spending too much time around Anakin. "No, don't pick that one, go with the blue one." Ahsoka was on her feet in a flash. "Wait, are those _patches_ on the elbows? Seriously? You dress like you're eighty years old. God, I thought Skyguy with his emo goth aesthetic was bad."

"It's practical!" Obi-Wan felt morally obligated to defend his slighted fashion sense.

"If you're eighty years old" He found himself being physically nudged out of the way so the teenager could start digging through his closet. "Why do you have So. Much. Tweed?”

Obi-Wan was fairly certain that was a rhetorical question but couldn’t help himself. “Because I like it?”

She emerged from digging through his clothes just long enough to offer him a look of such disgust, you’d think he’d insulted her grandmother or something. “You need help. No, you need an intervention.” 

“I think that’s a little bit--”

“Ah! I’ve known hipsters who have less tweed than you do. What time is your date?” 

“It’s not a date.”

“Fiiiiiiiine, what time is your ‘not-date’?” 

“I’m meeting him across town at seven.” 

“Damn, not enough time to go shopping then.” She huffed and very nearly disappeared from sight as she stretched to reach towards the back of his closet where there were clothes that hadn’t seen the light of day since he probably moved into this house almost eight years ago. 

“I’m not shopping for new clothing.” He felt the rather ridiculous urge to bury his face into his hands. “I cannot overstate this enough, it’s not a date and I don’t need to put on some fake façade.” 

“If he’s got more than two brain-cells he’d probably see right through that to see the secretly eighty-year-old man you are. Ugh, corduroy too? Do me a favor and throw this in the garbage where it belongs.” 

He suddenly found himself with a faceful of moss green corduroy as she tossed a jacket at him that he hadn’t seen in years. “OH! I’ve been looking for this for three years.” Obi-Wan deliberately ignored her order and stroked his fingers along the pile of the material affectionately. That just earned him another pitying look from the teenager. “Find anything else of interest in there?” 

“I’ll let you know if I find the missing treasure of Maz Kanata.” 

“You’re too kind, if you’re done eviscerating my sense of style, I think I should start getting ready."

"Fine, but you and I are going shopping this weekend for some clothes that look like they were manufactured sometime in this decade."

"If I agree to that will you let this go?"

"I'm just trying to help. You haven't gone on a date the entire time I've lived with you and well if your closet is anything to go by, you need all the help you can get. Cause Skyguy sure isn't going to be much help in that regard."

"For the last time, it's not a date."

"If you **decide** to dip your toe into the dating pool, we need to update your wardrobe. I almost managed to make Anakin presentable, didn't I? The boy didn't even know what skinny jeans were."

"So long as you promise to not put me in those awful skinny jeans." 

"Nah, they wouldn't suit you." Ahsoka emerged from his closet and thrust a dress shirt and pair of suit pants at him.

“Uh...that’s a bit formal for just dinner, Ahsoka. 

“Yep, which is why you’re going to leave the jacket and the rest. Elegant but informal.”

“It’s still a bit much.”

“Trust me, you’ll knock him dead,” Ahsoka promised with a mischievous smile and wagged the clothes at him expectantly. Obi-Wan debated if it was even worth arguing with her yet again that this wasn’t a date and he had no interest in knocking Cody dead.

And he stubbornly refused to acknowledge that little, supposedly long-buried part of him that said he wouldn’t mind that at all, thank you very much because that wasn’t going to help matters in the least. 

“It’s either that or we raid Skyguy’s closet and he’s way more buff than you and taller so you’ll just end up looking like an emo thirteen-year-old with a beard. Which, I guess is a look.” 

“Blast it, just give me the clothes and get out. After this is over, we are going to have a talk about bullying, young lady.” 

Ahsoka laughed and handed him the clothes and even leaned in to press a kiss against his cheek before she spun to leave. “It’s not bullying if I’m right, it’s just stating the facts.” 

Obi-Wan refused to be charmed by her or her antics. “Be that as it may, if you would kindly leave me with a few shreds of my dignity, I would appreciate it. And don’t go throwing out any of my clothing when I’m not looking no matter how much you think it may be ‘helping’ me.” 

“Fiiiiiine, keep your ugly corduroy jacket. Maybe it’ll come back in style one day. Retro is always coming back in, like a bad habit.” 

Obi-Wan rolled his eyes heavenward and shut the door firmly in her face before moving towards the en suite bathroom so he could get in a quick shower. And if he took a little extra time in his grooming to neaten up his beard and apply the nicely scented beard oil Ahsoka had given him for his birthday, well that was simply his business and no one else’s, was it not? 

It wasn’t as though Cody was going to get close enough to...oh dear. No, he had to stop that train of thought right in its tracks. He wanted to curse both of them for putting the whole ridiculous thought in his head. That was water well under the bridge and he had to make his peace with that. 

He got dressed in the clothes Ahsoka had picked out with no small amount of reluctance and told himself he was going to look absolutely ridiculous and would promptly take it off once he got a good look at himself in the mirror. 

And much to Obi-Wan’s chagrin, the moment he caught his reflection in the full-length mirror hanging behind the bathroom door, he wryly had to admit, if only to himself, the whole ensemble didn’t look nearly as bad as he’d expected it to. Though he felt rather ridiculous wearing a tie to what was supposed to be an informal dinner with an old buddy of his and made the executive decision to leave it. Ahsoka had left a pair of leather ankle boots he’d honestly forgotten he even owned and he wondered just where the hell she’d found that in his closet but played along with it if only because it helped bring down the formal air of the whole ridiculous getup. 

When Obi-Wan stepped into the living room with the intention of gathering his keys, he was momentarily blinded by the camera flash of Ahsoka taking his photo with her phone. 

“Really?” 

“What? We gotta document this momentous occasion. Right, Anakin?” 

Anakin had apparently stopped sulking and was seated on the couch typing away on his phone grunted distractedly. “Uh huh. So, Cody, huh?” 

Obi-Wan had thought he was simply texting one of his friends and wistfully hoped he’d escape this whole ordeal with the minimal amount of embarrassment but his brother wasn’t going to let him off that easily. “Yes, you remember him?” 

“Yep, Cody Fett. Currently, a commander in the GAR, originally from the Mandalorian Alliance, age thirty-five, eldest of five siblings and most importantly of all, single as far as I can tell.” 

Aghast, Obi-Wan just looked at his younger brother like he had grown a second head. “What the… _Anakin_. What did you do? Stalk the poor man through the internet.” 

“What? He’s on the holonetwork, it’s all publicly available information and unlike you, he doesn‘t shy away from technology or social media like it’s going to bite him.” 

“He’s super cute, you neglected to mention that part, Obi-Wan.” Ahsoka put in while leaning over Anakin’s shoulder so she could look at his phone screen. “I'm digging the scar.”

“I...I simply cannot deal with either of you right now.” 

“I’m practicing my intelligence gathering skills.” Anakin shot back a little testily.

“Call it what you will, it’s still creepy as hell. And a gross invasion of his privacy.” The red-haired man said with a grumpy look as he grabbed up his keys. 

“We’re just making sure you’re not going on a not-date with some unsavory type.” 

“Like I would be friends with him if he was?” The sharpness in Obi-Wan’s tone seemed to cut through the two youth’s amusement and they both sat up a little straighter. 

“We were just teasing you,” Ahsoka said a little hurt while Anakin looked like he wanted to say something back but for once kept his mouth shut. 

“There is a difference between having a laugh and stalking some poor stranger on the internet just because we’re going to have dinner. That’s a little beyond the pale, I’m afraid. Please do not do that again.” Obi-Wan felt a little guilty for being so sharp with them if only because he could see that hurt reflected on both their faces. 

“I’m headed off now, call me if you need me for anything.”

“You look nice?” Ahsoka pointed out with a hopeful looking smile. 

“Thank you, I do appreciate your help tonight, dearheart.” Because he hated to leave the house with such tension between the three of them, Obi-Wan moved to drop a kiss to the top of Ahsoka’s head and squeezed Anakin’s shoulder as he walked past. He took it as a positive sign that the younger man didn’t try and shrug the grip off. “No wild parties and try not to burn down the house.” He called over his shoulder teasingly as he opened the door.

“Have fun on your date with Commander Hottie!”

Obi-Wan just shook his head and refused to rise to that obvious bait. 

Nope he wasn’t touching that one with a barge-pole.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully, no one was terribly OOC, I know Ahsoka was kinda a feral mess roasting poor Obi-Wan's old man sense of fashion but well, it was kinda cute. I'm also not a huge fan of Anakin Skywalker and I'm trying to not make him into an emo brat but well...canon. Insufferable teenager Anakin Skywalker was pretty much AOTC Anakin and you can try and convince me otherwise. As always I am over on [tumblr](https://bylightofdawn.tumblr.com/) shouting about clone wars, my own writing process and various other things if you want to come chew my ear off about stuff.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is lovingly known as the Prelude to the Thirstening. Which is to say everyone is thirsty and they're just gonna get more thirsty before it's over. I'm 100% cheating on Echo and Fives's names, I'm sorry, I cannot come up with good Mando names but if anyone has any great suggestions, I'm all ears. I also need a name for Cody's mother but I'm running away and pretending that's not a thing I need to worry about just yet. I'm also combining the Citadel Arc and Umbara for reasons mainly because Obi-Wan was gone by then and Anakin was just a child so how do you write the Citadel Arc without those two? I'm making the rules up as I go along, sorry not sorry. Also yes, I totally snuck in Atin and Laseema from the RC books and I regret absolutely nothing.

Obi-Wan was very nearly late to his not-date with Cody in part thanks to the snarling traffic of Republic City. He normally didn’t even bother to try and drive into the city but instead relied upon their excellent public transportation system which was efficient but took twice as long.

Instead, he let Anakin take their sole family vehicle to drive back and forth to school thus cutting down their need to own more than one vehicle. Obi-Wan didn’t mind the hour and a half commute it took him to get to and from work because it gave him time to catch up on his grading and lesson planning. Unfortunately, the extra time he’d taken getting ready and Ahsoka’s intervention on his behalf had made him later than he planned so he opted instead for the car. 

It took him another ten minutes to find parking but Obi-Wan managed to make it to the restaurant just about on time. He shot off a quick text to Cody to let him know he was there and stepped inside long enough to speak with the hostess who told him it would be a small wait for a table, something he probably should have taken into consideration at the time considering it was the end of the workweek. He accepted the little plastic buzzer from the hostess and retreated back out onto the street to park it on one of the benches set up outside.

The sun was setting and took with it the last of the late spring heat. A breeze was blowing between the buildings which took some of the lingering humidity with it until all in all, it was a pleasant enough place to wait. He did end up popping the topmost button of his collar for his own comfort’s sake and was privately glad he’d opted to not wear the tie Ahsoka had picked out because that might have been a little bit too unbearable. 

“Obi-Wan!” He heard Cody call out his name and looked up as the other man crossed the street between two cars. 

Cody wasn’t quite out of breath but he’d obviously been going at a quick pace. He’d run into trouble with the subway where the line he’d been planning on taking to get to the restaurant had been shut down for unexpected maintenance and had to navigate around that but the closest subway station had been a kilometer away so he’d had to double-time it in hopes of not being too late for dinner.

Considering the fact he wasn’t carting around a sixty-pound pack or body armor, the walk had been nothing but a stroll but Cody was definitely feeling the mugginess in the air by the time he made it to the street. The unexpected sight of Obi-Wan sitting there looking so devastatingly prim and proper had his mouth going dry as a desert though and he nearly tripped over the curb of the sidewalk in part due to his momentary distraction. The last of the sun’s rays cut through the clogged skyline but enough of it lit up Obi-Wan’s hair and brightened the red into a warm copper and Cody was reminded of just how much he wanted to touch it just to see if it was as soft as it looked. 

Little Gods help him, he was so screwed. 

He just hoped he could make it through this evening without embarrassing himself somehow. 

“Sorry, the nearest subway station was apparently closed down.”

“I had no idea, I’m so sorry. I didn’t even think to check before I chose this place.” Obi-Wan apologized immediately and tried to not notice how handsome Cody looked right now with limited success. His sun-bronzed skin looked especially warm and flushed as he practically radiated an air of vitality. Cody had always been a handsome man and not even the scar that wound down the left side of his face and barely missed his left eye could interfere with that attractiveness. 

He looked older, more refined than he was in Obi-Wan’s memories. All traces of the lingering youthfulness and softness had melted away. And he knew he wasn’t the only one who noticed. Cody had always managed to turn a few heads but the man barely seemed to notice or care. Of course, Obi-Wan had met enough of the extended Fett clan to know they were all handsome and striking men in their own rights. The family resemblance had always been strong and there was a distinct stamp that was uniquely theirs and plenty of people in the GAR had taken note. 

But for Obi-Wan, he’d always noticed Cody even surrounded by his cousins and siblings. Even exhausted and dead on his feet with half a desert built up in his clothes, in his armor, and on his skin hadn’t been enough to completely kill his libido which had always chosen the most inopportune moments to make note of the fact his second in command had been unbearably hot. 

He remembered it had always been the dumbest, most inane things that set it off too. Like watching Cody’s throat as he sucked down a few tepid mouthfuls of metallic water from his canteen and the sharp line of his jaw as a trickle of water crept down his chin. 

Obi-Wan had desperately wanted to lick that droplet away at the time even though logically he knew that would have been a terrible mistake because Cody had been just as overheated and filthy as he had been. It would have been nothing but sand and sweaty skin that probably would have tasted horrible but that hadn’t mattered to his horniness at the time. 

In truth, his mind and soul would have been willing but he’d been so dead on his feet tired he hadn’t even managed half hardness despite the sharpness of his desire and lust. 

And now, more than a decade later he was embarrassed to discover he was just as attracted to the man as he’d been before. 

Oh dear, this didn’t bode well at all. 

“They are apparently rather busy so we have some time anyway so why don’t you take a load off?” He suggested and patted the bench beside him. 

Cody settled onto the bench next to Obi-Wan and the next breeze that flowed by brought with it a hint of aftershave and something that had always been uniquely Cody which had apparently been stamped into his memory much to the redhead's dismay. 

“Am I underdressed for this place?” The other man asked, a little skeptical of his dark jeans and a button-up shirt. He had the sleeves rolled back a few turns no doubt due to the humidity and left the first couple of buttons undone. He could have walked off the pages of one of those trendy magazines but Cody managed to pull off the look without it looking too artificial or overdone and it had some dark, primal part of Obi-Wan’s brain waking up like it had been in hibernation for far too long. 

Raising Anakin, studying for his teaching degree and then throwing himself into the workforce the past ten years hadn’t left him a lot of extra time for a social life. He and Satine had tried their short-lived attempt at rekindling the romance of their teenage years only to decide in the end they worked better than friends. 

Aside from that and a few tepid blind-dates and a one particularly disastrous attempt at a one-night stand, Obi-Wan hadn’t really found himself interested in moving things beyond the occasional flirtation. Ahsoka’s crack about him being a monk was sadly a little apropos, not that he wanted to admit it. Yet being reunited with Cody had something inside of him waking up and licking its proverbial chops and he didn’t know what to do with that.

Actually he knew exactly what he wanted to do with it but it was highly unhelpful and inappropriate to be lusting after a man he hadn’t seen in more than a decade.

Even if Anakin’s creepy spying had apparently revealed he wasn’t currently in any sort of committed or long-term relationship and how he wished he didn’t know that little tidbit right now!

“You’re perfect.” Did those words actually come out of his mouth?! “I mean, your attire is perfectly acceptable for this restaurant. Ahsoka decided I needed a fashion intervention. Apparently I dress like an eighty year old man and that is not acceptable.” 

Obi-Wan explained with a hefty dose of self-deprecating humor in his voice. 

That garnered a chuckle from Cody and a wry little smile because he’d faced a similar situation himself when he told his team why he couldn’t join them tonight for their walk down to the pub. “The lads were giving me a hard time as well. Boil was put out that he didn’t get an invite, by the way. I told him the last thing you wanted was to watch his ugly mug while you were trying to eat but there is an open invitation for us both to stop by the pub after we’re done here if you want.”

“I would be delighted,” Obi-Wan said with a laugh. “Is there anyone else from the 212th I would know?”

“A few familiar faces, Gregor and Crys are still with us, though Crys had other plans for libo and rightfully abandoned us to spend time with his girlfriend. A lot of the boys have moved on either to other squads or retired. Waxer and Boil tied the knot a few years back. They adopted a little girl and Waxer opted to retire when his contract was up so he could focus on raising her. I strongly suspect Boil will end up doing the same. It's hard being separated I think.” Cody said with a regretful look. “Even Gregor is making noises about wanting to start a restaurant of his own. I think he’s trying to make his twenty years and is going to cash out.”

“I remember the magic he could somehow whip up out of some nasty rat-packs and some seasoning, he’d probably do well at it.”

“Heh, you’re not wrong. I think the business side of it is a little overwhelming though. I suggested if that’s the route he wants to go, why not take a position back home with the Protectors and take a couple of business classes. See if that’s something he wants to do and I think he’s really considering it.”

“I could put him in touch with Dex, see if there’s anything he could suggest.” The buzzer that had been resting on the bench next to Obi-Wan suddenly went off and he had to stop it from nearly falling right off the edge. “That’s us I think, shall we?” 

He and Cody stepped inside the restaurant and Obi-Wan knew he’d picked well when Cody’s head perked up a little bit as he breathed in a little deeper to take in the faint trace of exotic spices in the air. There weren’t a lot of places that specialized in Mandalorian cuisine in the capital and depending on how long the other man had been stationed abroad, it might have been months since he’d had the chance to eat the food of his homeland.

“The owners are Mando ex-pats,” Obi-Wan explained and the gleam of approval in the other man’s eyes made him feel a tiny bit smug and pleased. As the hostess led them to a table, he wasn’t surprised to catch smatterings of conversation that was a mixture of Mando’a and the Basic that was the preferred tongue of the Republic. It would seem this place was popular with the local Mandalorian population which was a good sign as to the authenticity of the place. 

“The lads are going to be jealous. I had no idea this place even existed.” The dark-haired man chortled as he sat down across from Obi-Wan.

“How long has it been since you went back?” 

“Over a year, not since my cousin Bly got married. And even then, it was only for a couple of days.” He admitted and there was no masking the regret in his voice. Obi-Wan knew how family-oriented Mandalorians were, to begin with, but the extended Fett clan had always struck him as close even for Mandalorians. 

“I’m sorry,” Obi-Wan said sincerely and Cody shot him a smile as he picked up the menu. 

“That’s military life for you, I guess. It’s not so bad most of the time, and I’m doing good work. _Buir_ keeps trying to talk me into transferring back home. Taking up a position with the Protectors. I might do that in a few years but it makes no sense to quit before I make my twenty.” 

Obi-Wan understood that sentiment. He would get a full pension and benefits for dedicating two decades to the protection of the Republic. 

If he were being honest with himself, Obi-Wan couldn’t picture Cody doing anything else either. If ever there was someone who had been born and bred to live and breathe the disciplined life of a career soldier it was Cody Fett. 

Obi-Wan had joined up because he’d felt like it was expected of him, because he’d wanted to make his adopted father proud and because there had been a war on. But he hadn’t felt the draw to a life of a soldier like Cody and some of the other men he’d served with did. 

“What about you, Obi-Wan? You mentioned wanting to be a teacher, did you end up going into education after all?” 

“I did.” He didn’t know why he was so pleased that Cody remembered that random snippet of conversation they’d had so long ago but he was. “I’m teaching year seven history. I thought about going into academia and maybe going up to university level but honestly, I am enjoying where I’m at. I feel like I can make a real difference. Maybe inspire some more interest or passion in the subject.” 

“It’s an admirable profession. You’re helping shape the future of the Republic.” Cody said with a warm sort of earnestness in his face and Obi-Wan found himself a little flustered by that approval. “I swear, every year the junior officers they give me just seem to get younger and younger. Some of them barely seem old enough to have finished their A-Levels.” He said with a chuckle and a wry shake of his head and their conversation was momentarily derailed by the waitress who took their order. Cody ordered the _tiingilar_ and a dark, hoppy stout favored by Mandalorians but was a little too bitter for Obi-Wan’s tastes. 

He ordered the stew as well and got a lighter ale for himself. 

“How’s your brother doing?” Obi-Wan asked after the waitress left.

“Which one?” Cody teased with a smile. “I have a couple of them.” 

“I hadn’t noticed.” He snarked right back at him. “But I was talking about Rex in particular but feel free to fill me in on all the Fett family gossip.”

“That would take all night.” The sad thing was, Obi-Wan believed him. He only met a small portion of the wildly explosive clan and knew there were a lot more. Apparently twins and other multi-births ran in most branches of the family and it was enough to make Obi-Wan’s head spin if he tried to get them all straight in his head.

“Rex is doing good. He moved back home to help my father with the Protectors a few years ago and seems to be enjoying it though he won’t admit to it. The twins demanded we start to call them Fives and Echo, do not ask me where they got that from because I could not say. Actually Echo makes sense but Fives? I don’t know what’s going on in his head. They assigned him a funny identification number and he went with it.” 

Cody took a deep breath then and it was obvious he was trying to steel himself to go on. “We nearly lost Ey’ika on his last tour. Their vehicle ran over an IED and he was the only one who made it. He lost both of his legs and his right arm, spent a long time in rehab but he’s alive. Fitted him with some new high-tech prosthetics courtesy of a friend of _Buir_ who is in the medical research field so he has limited usage of his right hand.” 

He delivered the news with a deliberate sort of flat emotionlessness which Obi-Wan saw through like it was a wet tissue. He’d been more traumatized by the whole ordeal than he wanted to admit and Obi-Wan felt a wash of horror wash through. He reached across the table and wrapped his fingers around Cody’s wrist gently. 

“I’m so sorry that happened to him but I’m glad he survived. How did Fives handle it?”

“Poorly. He was in the second vehicle and saw the whole thing. He ended up cashing out right after to help Ey’ika with his rehab but honestly, I don't think his heart was in it after that. There was....some friction with his CO which didn't help matters. They’re both going to school now. Echo is doing something with computers and is really enjoying it. Fives is pursuing a general education degree, not sure even he knows what he wants to do.” Cody’s eyes briefly glanced down at Obi-Wan’s fingers where they rested over his hand and wrist but he didn’t try and shrug or disengage the hold.

“I’m sure he’ll figure something out.”

“He’ll land on his feet, he generally does. Boba just turned thirteen and is definitely turning in to a teenager. I feel for my parents.” The boy had been a later in life pregnancy if Obi-Wan recalled correctly and hadn’t been planned.

“I can imagine, I barely survived Anakin’s teenage years. And honestly, sometimes that boy is still just as moody and sulky as one.” Obi-Wan snorted, shaking his head in open dismay as he remembered those prickly and exhaustive years as he tried to learn how to raise a moody and traumatized young boy who had lost two parental figures in the span of two years while wrangling with his own grief and the stress of rearranging his entire life. 

The waitress returned with their drinks and Obi-Wan reached for his ale so he could take a sip of it. 

“Yet one teenager wasn’t enough, you decided to go and take in a second one, huh?” Cody teased him over the rim of his glass. 

“Technically, Ahsoka is here on an education exchange program but truthfully, I would adopt her in a second. She lost her whole family in the war, Separatists bombed her village, do you remember Plo Koon?”

“Of the 104st? Yes, my cousin, Wolffe was his second. Ended up retiring so he could continue serving under him actually. He’s doing something with archeology, I believe?”

“Yes, mapping out ancient ruins and working for the Republic archeology society. He and the 104th were the ones who provided aid for Ahsoka’s people and Plo helped pull her out of the ruins of her home. He saw to it that she ended up in a Republic run orphanage and they kept in touch. She’s sharp as a whip and precocious but there are only limited options for an orphan from some remote province so he asked me if I could sponsor her so she could get a better education in the capital because his work pulls him away too much to be able to take care of a child.” 

Cody could hear the affection in the man’s voice and the soft look in his eyes spoke of his love for the girl. “Well? Let’s see some photos, I know you must have some.” He said, arching a brow at the other man and he found himself somewhat regretful when Obi-Wan withdrew his hand so he could pull out his phone. 

The warm, ghostly impression of his fingers on his skin lingered distractingly but he pushed that to the back of his mind in favor of leaning over so he could squint at the screen of Obi-Wan’s phone. It was a picture of the three of them with Obi-Wan standing in the middle framed by a brightly smiling girl who had the dark reddish-brown complexion you often saw in the sun-baked grasslands of Shilli and the nearby Dathomir regions. She had a riot of multi-colored braids and blue eyes which was striking against the rich brown of her skin tone. If Cody had to guess, she was probably a Togruta or one of those distant tribes. And next to Obi-Wan sat a man who practically towered over the two of them smiling in that awkward way one did when you were ordered to perform for a photo but didn’t want to. He was handsome with longish hair that couldn’t quite decide if it wanted to be dark blond or brown and had startlingly bright blue eyes. 

Cody had seen photos of a younger Anakin Skywalker though he barely resembled the somber-looking nine year old he’d been when Obi-Wan informed him his adopted father had taken in another orphan seemingly out of the blue. 

“Anakin really grew up, didn’t he.” 

“God help me, he outpaced me at sixteen and hasn’t let me live it down since.” Obi-Wan sighed mournfully. “He nearly bankrupted me when he hit his first growth spurt, I’d barely bought one pair of shoes before he was outgrowing it and onto the next size up.” 

“Heh, we have a communal stock back home, all the families pitch in and swap in and out clothes as they need it. The younger _vod_ complain and want more fashionable, trendy items and they’re welcome to buy that with their own money but otherwise, you made do with what’s available.”

“Not a bad system, especially considering how many clan-members you have to clothe.”

“Another perk of the military, don’t have to worry about those kinds of things.” 

The waitress returned then carrying a tray laden down with large bowls filled to the rim with the spicy smelling stew. She shot Obi-Wan a look that was filled with amused pity and he knew she fully expected him to quail in the face of the intense spices favored by the Mandalorians. But he’d spent almost a year on the main island of Mandalore during the civil war in his teenage years and was well acquainted with the cooking even if it was still borderline unpleasant for his far less prepared palette.

He noticed Cody didn’t receive that same look and guess she’d clocked him as a fellow Mandalorian. No, the look she gave him was definitely approving and decidedly accessing and Obi-Wan found himself a little discomfited by how blatantly she was checking the other man out. She placed a basket of hearty looking bread down as well before straightening. 

“Let me know if there’s anything else I can get you.” The words were more directed towards Cody who just nodded his head and thanked her politely but either didn’t notice or was deliberately choosing to overlook the less than subtle hints she was dropping. 

The dark-haired soldier eagerly tucked into his meal and paused after that first too-hot mouthful of food. He visibly savored the flavor of the stew with visible pleasure and delight that could have only been labeled as something rapturous. 

Obi-Wan’s mouth went dry and he couldn’t even blame the food because he’d been blowing on his own spoonful of stew in an attempt to cool it down first because it was still steaming hot. 

Cody’s ridiculously long lashes dropped momentarily as his eyes closed for the briefest of moments. 

“That good, huh?”

“Shush, I’m having a religious experience right now.” The other man murmured as he swallowed. A flush was starting to tinge his deeply tanned skin and when Cody’s eyes opened once again, the delight in his golden-brown eyes was unmistakable. 

“I’ll leave you to it then.” Obi-Wan teased and took his first bite of the stew. The spiciness immediately exploded over his tongue but he’d expected that considering just inhaling the aroma had practically singed his nose-hairs. Underneath the spice was a surprisingly deep level of flavor he’d come to expect from Mandalorian cooking. They loved a burning mouth feel but they often balanced out that spice with other flavors including sour and sweetness. 

Cody was watching him intently, almost as though he was gauging his reaction and Obi-Wan offered him an approving smile. “It’s very good.” 

That earned him a grin that was surprisingly boyish and a little startling considering Cody’s generally even-keeled demeanor and Obi-Wan felt something tighten in his chest momentarily and he forced himself to look down at the bowl even as his face started to go warm. He had the sneaking suspicion his face was going bright red and he only hoped Cody would chalk it up to a reaction of the spices from the _heturam_ of the stew. 

They both lapsed into silence in favor of enjoying the food and Cody packed away the stew at an impressive clip so Obi-Wan knew he’d chosen wisely when picking their venue for the night. He was happy to see the other man so obviously excited to enjoy the taste of his homeland and culture he probably didn’t get to experience very often in the GAR. 

The bread was hearty and dense, perfect for soaking up the liquids in the stew. Obi-Wan put a respectable dent in his bowl but couldn’t finish it while Cody polished his off with ease though admitted he was utterly stuffed afterward. They lingered there, neither eager to call it quits just yet. 

“You’ve told me about the family but what about you? Anything new I should know about you, Cody?” Obi-Wan finally worked up the nerve to ask. He’d noticed a lack of any kind of wedding band but that didn’t necessarily mean anything. “Are you married? Seeing someone?” 

A part of him almost wanted to hear him say he was so in spite of what Anakin had told him so Obi-Wan could firmly tell that traitorous part of him apparently still pining after all these years to just give up the ghost. 

Cody looked away a little discomfited, as though he wasn’t very comfortable with this sudden innocuous turn of conversation. Or maybe he’d simply had a bad relationship and didn’t want to talk about it. Obi-Wan couldn’t say for certain because there was a regrettable ten-year gap of radio silence between the two of them and he found himself questioning _why_. 

He’d missed this man and it was only becoming apparent just how much he’d missed him the longer they spent together. 

“Ah, no, there’s no one. Made a couple of attempts but honestly, the job is hell on relationships. There could be a month or two at a time where I was so deep in a jungle or a desert somewhere without any kind of contact with the outside world. Admittedly, there aren’t as many extended missions like that these days. I’m getting a little long in the tooth for that, I guess.” There was the faintest hint of something that might have been akin to bitterness in Cody’s voice as he admitted that. 

“I’m sorry,” Obi-Wan said softly and he remembered those days all too well. The sporadic attempts at keeping in touch they’d tried to make via email before communication had sort of trailed off between them. He found himself regretting that even at the time Cody had been busy with the waning end of the war and then the cleanup efforts while Obi-Wan had been up to his eyebrows in school. 

Still, he should have tried harder and he promised himself, this time he would. 

“What about yourself?” Cody asked softly, a curiously intent look on his face. 

“No, there’s no one, I’m afraid. It was a pretty hectic couple of years there trying to raise Anakin and getting my teaching degree and well, I guess some things just sort of fell by the wayside.” Obi-Wan admitted a little sadly. “Ahsoka was teasing me about being a monk tonight, I guess because I haven’t been on a date in a while.” 

Those words slipped out of his mouth without him even realizing it and it was only when Cody’s eyes went a little wide with surprise that Obi-Wan re-examined his words and felt mortification roll through him. “Not that this is a date! Just...I haven’t...er…you know.” He finally ended up saying somewhat lamely as though Cody could possibly know what he meant. 

Obi-Wan silently wished for the ground to swallow him up whole.

“Siblings can be the worst.” The other man finally said with a commiserating look. He looked like he was going to say something more but stopped as a tall, burly looking man who had the same dark coloring you often found in the Northern parts of Mandalore and Concordia. His black hair was clipped short and he had a rather impressive looking scar that bisected his face, running beneath his right eye and stretched all the way across his mouth to end on the left side of his chin. 

He was accompanied by a beautiful, willow-thin woman with black hair so dark it looked almost blue under the lights. 

“Commander,” The man said with a grave-looking smile as he held out a hand to Cody. “It’s a pleasure to see you again.”

“The honor is all mine, Atin.” Cody said as they reached out and clasped their hands around the other man’s forearm in a more traditional Mandalorian greeting. “It’s been a while.” 

“It has indeed. Allow me to introduce my wife, Laseema.” 

“I hope you found the food to your liking, Commander Fett.” The woman said with a warm looking smile. 

“Ma’am, it was the best food I’ve had in over a year. Finest I’ve had outside of home.” Cody assured her with honest enthusiasm and she looked very please by the enthusiastic compliment.

“I’m glad to hear that, the reception has been surprisingly positive considering how cosmopolitan the capital could be.”

“I guess there are more ex-pats here than we expected but we’re always happy to bring everyone a taste of home. It’s proven popular with the _aruetiise_ as well.” Atin said, pulling upon the Mando’a word for foreigners and he nodded politely at Obi-Wan so that he wouldn’t feel completely left out of the conversation.

“Let me introduce you to Obi-Wan Kenobi. We served together during the war.” Cody said a little belatedly. 

“I’ve heard nothing but the highest of praises about your establishment and I’m delighted to find it’s every bit as delicious as I’ve been told.” Obi-Wan said with a warm smile.

“Kenobi...you lead the 212th, right? Back in the war?” 

“For three years, yes. A family emergency dictated I retire though.” 

Atin and Cody exchanged curiously unreadable glances and the other Mandalorian nodded as though he’d made up his mind about something. “We won’t take up any more of your time. I just wanted to say hello to the commander.”

“Give my regards to your father and brothers when you next see them.” 

“Will do. _Ret'urcye mhi, al'verde._.” Atin said, lapsing briefly into Mando’a and Cody echoed the farewell before he and his wife left with one final wave.

“What was that about?” Obi-Wan asked once the couple disappeared from view and walked back into the kitchen.

“What?”

“He had a strange look on his face when he asked me about the 212th.” 

Cody looked a little hesitant and it was pretty apparent he was mulling over his next words carefully. “You were a popular commander. Not too many outsiders knew how to mesh with the _vode_ as well as you did. It’s partly why the 212th had a reputation of being the best of the best. I’m sorry to say your replacements weren’t nearly as adept.” 

He finally said somewhat softly and there was a wealth of things Obi-Wan sensed he wasn’t saying. 

“I’m sorry, Cody. I’m sorry for leaving as I did.”

“No, family comes first. You did what you had to do and any Mando worth his salt gets that.” The other man said firmly, his eyes and face absolutely earnest. “Besides, you can’t read too much into Atin’s behavior. He’s Clan Skirata and they’re all _dini'la_.”

This he said with a tiny little smirk. “All of Atin and his brothers were commandos, to give you an idea of how crazy they can be. I’m surprised to find him here in the capital though, Kal Skirata tends to guard his brood as jealousy as a krayt dragon guards it’s pearl.”

“His wife doesn’t appear to be Mandalorian stock, maybe he moved here to be with her.” 

“Could be. I’ll be honest, the last place I expected to find Atin Skirata was running a restaurant in the Republic capital.” 

After that, they paid their bill and headed out onto the empty street. Obi-Wan once again found himself reluctant to call tonight over. He enjoyed talking with Cody and catching up. The commander seemed to have the same idea as him because he slanted a curious look his way. 

“You still up for that drink with the boys?” 

“Just one, I’ve still got to drive home.”

“If you get too tipsy, you can sack out in my room.” It was a little hard to tell with the yellow fluorescent lighting on the street but Obi-Wan could have sworn he saw the tips of Cody’s ears go a little red. “That is to say, I’m all alone in the double so there’s an extra bed.”

“Alright, I’ll drive us. I’m parked around the corner.” With that settled, they headed out. Obi-Wan pulled out his phone and sent both Anakin and Ahsoka a quick text explaining he might be late returning. 

He got a bunch of exclamation points from Ahsoka followed by a string of emoji that made absolutely no sense to him. Why was she sending him eggplants and peach emoji? 

“Everything okay?” Cody asked, shooting him a puzzled look.

“Only me lamenting not understanding the youth of today. Texting is bad enough but these days they use all these little faces and pictures to communicate and it’s like trying to read hieroglyphs.”

“Sucks getting old, doesn’t it?”

“Indeed it does, my friend.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Mando'a Translations**  
>  _Aruetiise-_ Outsiders, foreigners but can be used to describe traitors as well. It's being used for foreigner in this case.  
>  _Buir-_ Gender-neutral term for parent though in this case he is referring to his father.  
>  _Dini'la-_ Insane  
>  _Heturam-_ Mouthburning sensation brought on by intensely spicy food favored by the Mandalorians.  
>  _Ret'urcye mhi, al'verde-_ Goodbye, Commander, a traditional farewell that literally means Maybe we'll meet again with added on rank of commander.  
>  _Tiingilar-_ Extremely spicy Mandalorian dish. It was originally a casserole but has been since retconed to be a spicy stew. There's actually a recipe in the new Galaxy's Edge cookbook which I'm ashamed to say I bought.  
>  _Vod/Vode-_ Brother/Brothers though in Mando'a this can be a catch-all term to also include comrade or a brother in arms.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have a slightly early chapter because tomorrow is going to be a hectic day for me. I also think AO3 accidentally posted a test thing I was trying for a later work so sorry if ya'll go a random update? That's since been deleted. But hey! We have some glacial progress in the thirst department and these boys actually start talking about things.

The short walk to Obi-Wan's car was pleasant for the most part. The breeze continued to flow between the buildings and helped leech some of the residual heat from the concrete and stone facades of the buildings in this part of town. It was an older part of the city and far enough from the central district with its towering metal skyscrapers.

"How have you been enjoying your leave so far?" Obi-Wan asked with polite interest as he glanced over at Cody. 

"It's been fine, getting better by the minute," Cody said, slanting a mischievous look at Obi-Wan. "The capital is interesting and a fascinating cross-section of the Republic but it's not home. Sadly, there just wasn't enough time to ship us all home to Mandalore just for one weekend of leave."

Cody wasn't even surprised to find he meant every word of that statement. It felt like the past decade hadn't even happened. He fully expected their conversation to lag and grow awkward and stilted as they both realized they'd grown too far apart as people to find that shared, common ground but instead, it has felt as easy talking to Obi-Wan now as it had over a decade ago. 

And he suspected the other man felt the same way. As they walked up the street in the direction of Obi-Wan's car, their bodies seemed to drift closer to one another almost automatically. It would have been so easy to reach out just a few centimeters and brush their fingers together. To reach out and capture Obi-Wan's hand with his own. 

He was struck by the memory of another night a decade and half a world away from where he and Obi-Wan had slept underneath their vehicle rather than in their dug-out holes because the Seppies had been shelling them for hours and it was safer there under the heavily armored vehicles than out in the open. 

Cody could still remember the astringent smell of gasoline and engine oil mixed with the red hard-packed Geonosian dirt. He and Obi-Wan had been packed under that damn vehicle with two other men wearing full body-armor and kits so it had been a tight squeeze. 

They had lain there are to arm and leg to leg and tried to squeeze out a few minutes of sleep as the Separatist's shells landed half a click out from their position. Some of it landed close enough he'd been able to feel the vibration under his back and he'd laid there quietly praying a lucky round didn't land on their vehicle or close enough to spit up shrapnel because it would have shredded them like a cheese grater.

Cody knew he wasn't the only one who'd been terrified of that happening because he still remembered the occasional curses that escaped the brand new replacement they had picked up right before Point Rain every time a mortar landed a little too close.

In contrast to the rookie, Obi-Wan had been the picture of poise and serenity. Cody remembered looking over at him in the darkness and only being able to catch the gleam of his eyes when the phosphorus explosions of the enemy shelling briefly lit up the night. He remembered rashly thinking he didn't want to die that night without telling the other man how much he loved him or without kissing him just once. 

Cody had always been aggressive and daring on the battlefield but when it came to his personal life and this strange, ephemeral _thing_ that had grown steadily but unstated between the two of them, he was much more cautious.

He'd known even back then that they couldn't act on the attraction that sparked between them like a live-wire because the regs forbid it and he didn't want to put Obi-Wan in the untenable position of having to choose between his principles and Cody. 

But as their eyes met in the shadows of that hulking vehicle and the Separatists did their best to bomb them to Hell, Cody had hooked his pinkie over Obi-Wan's where it lay between their bodies. It had twitched ever so slightly before he squeezed that single-digit closer to the reinforced leather and metal of his glove in an unmistakable reciprocation. 

If they'd been all alone at that moment, Cody would have thrown all caution to the wind and would have kissed him right then and there, and hung the regs. He'd always suspected Obi-Wan would have kissed him back too and they would have been well and truly sunk.

But they hadn't been alone and when the night was briefly lit up by the bright white of the phosphorus glow, Cody had been able to read that wistful softness in Obi-Wan's face and had suspected he wore a similar expression.

"Credit for your thoughts?" Obi-Wan's voice dragged him right back to the present and Cody found himself a little off his stride.

"Sorry, I wandered there for a second." He apologized softly and shot the other man a chagrined look. "I was uh...was thinking about that first night on Point Rain. When the Seps were bombing the hell out of us."

"I remember." The red-haired man said softly. "That was a terrible night. I was half-convinced one of those mortar rounds was going to land right on our heads."

"Never would have thought that because you seemed as cool and collected as though it was just a walk in the park." Cody found himself smiling a little wryly and he felt the edges of his scar crinkle near the corner of his eye as he did so.

"I assure you, I was not nearly as calm as I looked," Obi-Wan said with a laugh but then his expression softened ever so slightly. "It helped...having you there beside me. I didn't want either of us to get hurt but having you by my side helped more than I can say." 

The softness in the other man’s eyes, the way he said those words almost like a confession had the hairs on the back of Cody’s neck prickling up as want slammed into him so fiercely it took every ounce of his vaunted self-control to not reach out and catch the other man by the chin so he could kiss him and pour almost fifteen years of need and wanting into that kiss. 

“Me too,” Cody managed and his voice sounded rough and husky even to his own ear. He suspected Obi-Wan noticed too because his eyes widened ever so slightly and for a breathless moment, time seemed to slow to a crawl. The tip of his tongue darted out to moisten his lower lip briefly and that very nearly broke Cody right then and there. He had the distant thought that some of his hunger and need showed plainly on his face but Obi-Wan didn’t look away or move. 

But then the moment was shattered by the rude blare of a car horn as a car that had been turning the corner very nearly hit another one that had run the stop sign. It was like having a bucket of ice water dumped on his head and Cody’s gaze was automatically drawn to where the driver of the first car was gesticulating wildly at the oblivious second car. He shoved his hands in his pockets to keep from doing something he might end up regretting. 

Obi-Wan cleared his throat and came back to life. “I’m right there.” 

He said, indicating a fairly unremarkable family sedan parked against the curb and he fished a set of keys out of his pocket and hit the unlock button on the keyfob. The alarm chirped cheerfully and disengaged the locks so Cody moved to slide into the passenger seat. He bucked up and fiddled with the seatbelt to give his hands something to do as he desperately tried to claw back some precious few strands of his self-control because he’d come precariously close to utterly blowing it back there. 

Obi-Wan seemed a little jumpy now too as he settled behind the steering wheel and buckled up. “So, you said your hotel was off of fifth?” 

“Yeah, it’s a pretty straight shot from here. I’ll navigate you.” Cody offered since he didn’t see anything like a GPS system. Somehow, that didn’t surprise him but then again, these days who needed it when you had a smartphone? 

“Excellent.” The other man said cheerfully and after checking for oncoming traffic, he turned on his blinker and pulled away from the curb. Obi-Wan drove at a calm and sedate sort of pace which was a wild contrast to how Anakin tended to drive. He always signaled before changing lanes and went at exactly the speed limit. The drive should have calmed his nerves but Cody found himself incapable of really relaxing because his traitorous mind kept going back to the way he’d looked back there illuminated by the yellowish streetlight. 

By all rights, he shouldn’t have looked nearly as delectable as he had because fluorescent lighting was unkind to just about everyone yet somehow it had managed to catch the red in Obi-Wan’s hair in such a way that he’d looked unbearably attractive at that moment. 

The ride to Cody’s hotel barely took ten minutes but an uneasy sort of silence filled the cabin of the car as both men lapsed into silence save for Cody occasionally giving an appropriate direction. 

“You can park in the parking garage.” He instructed as he pulled out his wallet and withdrew his room card so Obi-Wan could fit it into the reader at the barricade. He was very careful to hold the piece of plastic between two fingers so there was no chance of their fingers bumping or brushing against each other as he handed off the card. Obi-Wan was equally ginger as he handed it back to him and once the barricade rose, he pulled carefully into the parking garage and followed the signage until he found an open parking spot. 

He pulled in carefully and put the car in park but he didn’t turn off the car just yet. “Before we go in...are we okay?” Obi-Wan asked quietly as his brows knit together ever so slightly. 

Apparently Cody hadn’t been nearly as subtle with his brooding as he’d hoped he was. 

“Yeah, of course.” He tried to play it off somewhat lamely as he reached for the button that would release his seatbelt. 

“If you are sure? If something is bothering you, please don't hesitate to tell me. I'm not your CO anymore."

"Trust me, I'm aware of that." Something in Cody's voice had Obi-Wan's gaze sharpening and he reached across the gearshift and touched the back of Cody's wrist.

"Talk to me, Cody. Please?"

Cody looked down at that and where it touched his wrist with an inscrutable look on his face for a moment. The corners of his mouth turned down in a momentary frown. 

He debated what to say. If he dared risk everything by being honest and potentially ruining things between them forever. It had been almost eleven years and even if Obi-Wan had once felt the same way he did, there was a good chance he had moved on with his life and didn't want the same things Cody wanted. 

Was it worth it to risk any chance of friendship between them chasing an untenable dream?

"I guess...I don't know what this is between us." He finally said quietly because even as terrifying as the prospect of Obi-Wan shooting him down was, Cody knew if he didn't say anything a second time, he might regret it for the rest of his life. "I thought I knew where we stood once. I thought once you got out of the army and all those stupid regulations were out of the way, we'd finally take that last step. But then things just went radio silent between us. And I thought I'd put it all behind me but there's always been a part of me that kept wondering and chewing over what-if at the back of my head."

He forced himself to meet Obi-Wan's gaze head-on even though he was scared of what he might see in those gray-blue eyes. "I know I could have been more clear about what I wanted in the past but the war got in the way and by the time things calmed down, we weren't really talking anymore. The first time I got leave, I tried calling you and your line was disconnected and I told myself, that was it. Am I way out of line and just imagining things that weren't there? Did you want that too?" 

"For what it's worth, you weren't imagining things, I did want to take that next step as well. At the time, I couldn't say anything because I was your CO and well, things got a little mad there for a while." 

Obi-Wan's expression went a little wistful and sad. "I fear we both may have made a mess of things. I didn't even realize I hadn't given you my new mobile. I had...an issue with a classmate, my first year back. She grew a bit too obsessed with me so I had to change my number and actually move. I'm glad to say she got the mental help she desperately needed as far as I know but I thought I had forwarded on my new contact info. I'm sorry, Cody."

"I didn't know. Little Gods, I feel so stupid." 

"Don't, we both made mistakes. I was so wrapped up in my own problems those first few years, by the time I could breathe again, I hadn't heard anything from you and also assumed you weren't interested anymore either." 

Cody's hand slowly turned over underneath Obi-Wan's and he carefully laced their fingers together. "So what happens now?" He asked, looking down at their hands. He'd deliberately kept his grip light and gone slow enough that Obi-Wan had plenty of time to slip his fingers free of that carefully light hold.

"Now? I am open to the idea of seeing where this goes if you are." And to illustrate his point, he squeezed Cody's fingers gently. "I think we should start with that drink with the lads first and we can talk about how we are going to make this work without completely karking it all up a second time around." 

That was more than he could have hoped for and Cody found himself fighting back a goofy looking smile. "Sounds good to me." He stroked his thumb against the back of Obi-Wan's hand once and then with some reluctance, pulled his hand back so he could open up the passenger side door and climbed out. 

Obi-Wan turned off the car and followed suit. He activated the alarm and slipped the keys into his pocket as he walked around the back of the car to join the other man. After a brief second hesitation, he reached out and slotted their fingers back together. Cody's eyebrow crept up ever so slightly but he fitted their hands together more firmly while Obi-Wan smiled enigmatically. 

There had been a time that smile had both exasperated and aggravated him and Cody suspected the other man knew all too well the effect that smile had on others. He wasn't going to look a gift bantha in the mouth though and the two of them headed out of the parking garage and out onto the street beyond.

"Which pub are they at?" 

"Just up the street. They're airing the limmie playoffs so I doubt they have left their seats all night long. And since I haven't gotten a text from either Gregor or Boil saying there has been a bar fight or no one is currently being arrested, I'm going to assume things are going well. Otherwise, Fox wouldn't have been able to resist calling me to gloat by now." Cody said with a wry smile.

"Fox?" 

"My cousin, he's Wolffe's twin brother and captain of the Republic Guard. And he's a right bastard who can't resist the urge to yank my chain at every opportunity." He

"Fox _and_ Wolffe? There has to be a story there."

"Every family has a set of weirdos and they just happen to have gotten the short end of the stick. Their parents are actually rather nice, just...they're your typical flower-children who never outgrew their wild roots. Not your typical Mandalorians suffice it to say. I think Fox and Wolffe got double dosages of the bastard gene because of that. Or maybe they just have massive chips on their shoulders because of their unfortunate names."

"And I'm sure you never teased them about it ever growing up." Obi-Wan teased with a laugh.

"I can neither confirm nor deny that I ever left doggie biscuits in their beds on more than one occasion."

"Sounds to me like you might have some of that bastardly behavior coming your way."

"I have no idea what you mean." Amusement gleamed in Cody's eyes despite his deadpan expression. They were nearing the entrance of the bar though so he tugged on Obi-Wan's and lightly as he came to a stop. A more serious expression overtook his face as he stroked his thumb across the back of the other man's hand lightly. 

"Are we going in like this because I can pretty much guarantee Boil and the others will tease the Hell out of us all night long if we walk in there holding hands."

“If we can’t withstand them teasing us then I fear we may be doomed. Besides, I sincerely doubt their level of teasing will even begin to approach what we’re bound to face once Anakin and Ahsoka find out.” Obi-Wan informed him blandly. “Two words for you, snarky teenagers.” 

“Little Gods, now you really are scaring me,” Cody said, feigning horror. 

“You should be scared. Very, very scared.” Obi-Wan agreed and squeezed Cody’s hand lightly and started to tug him towards the door. 

“Fine, but before we go face the feral mob…” He made sure to telegraph his intention clearly and brought his free hand up to lightly rest it against Obi-Wan’s bearded cheek which effectively brought the other man to a stop. When Cody leaned in to kiss him, the other man met him halfway, thus putting aside any lingering uncertainties he might have had because it felt good and it felt as breathlessly easy as he’d always hoped it would be.

Obi-Wan was smiling when their mouths met and he automatically tilted his head just a hairsbreadth so their mouths fit together more comfortably. Cody didn’t linger overly long even though he was tempted to and when they broke away, he rested his forehead against Obi-Wan’s in an affectionate _kov'nynir_. 

“Just wanted to do that one time before they eat us up alive.” He murmured, holding that touch for a moment. Cody suspected Obi-Wan’s familiarity with Mandalorian customs was strong enough to recognize the significance of that gesture.

“I highly doubt it will be that bad, my dear. But if it is, I’ll cover you while we make a break for the door.” 

“Deal.” Cody said with a chuckle and stepped back so he and Obi-Wan could head into the bar and face the no doubt enthusiastic teasing of his friends and squadmates.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, confession time, that whole Cody and Obi-Wan holding pinkies undercover legitimately was the first scene that popped into my head when I was coming up with this fic. I was originally just going to write that and then my inner angstgoblin woke up and said 'but what if they never acted on it and instead wasted 10 years on a stupid miscommunication and just assumed the other wasn't actually interested after all?' So you can blame this whole fic on that tiny little scene I guess.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm handwaving a bit about the Umbara campaign and Krell in general. I am also aware Waxer is technically the lieutenant but well, I make the world, I make the rules? Good news is, I finished writing this monster last night so the fic is officially complete. For my own sanity's sake, I'm going to stick with this posting schedule but there are 3 additional chapters coming. I do work a full-time job so I need some time to edit and breathe. Also, leaving you with the knowledge that Rex totally did dye his hair bright blue in one of the clone wars books which is no longer canon but if you think I was going to let that go without dragging it into this fic in some way then you really dont know me very well as an author. 😂

They'd no sooner walked into the pub than they somehow found themselves the center of attention as the rest of Cody's team turned almost as one. 

The regulation short hair, straight posture and something in their bearing as a whole just screamed military even with the lot of them dressed in civilian clothes. Obi-Wan felt like he was a nice, juicy mouse that had wandered into a room of hungry tookas because they took one look at the two of them standing there holding hands and a wide array of reactions overtook the men. Most started to grin but a few looks of dismay shown including on Boil's face who cursed loudly at the sight of them and pulled out his wallet.

"Fierfek. You owe me a drink, commander." He informed Cody as he slapped some credits in a smug-looking Gregor's hand.

"Thank you, _ner vod_ " Gregor said cheerfully and Boil wasn't the only one who slipped credits his way.

Cody leveled an unamused look at the lot of them and it was obvious he was already regretting the decision to walk through the door. "I'm going to pretend I didn't see anything. And I don't owe you a damn thing, Boil."

"Saw what?" Obi-Wan echoed blandly. 

"It was worth a try. Sir, it's really good to see you again." Boil said with a smile as he approached.

"Just call me Obi-Wan, I'm not your CO anymore." 

"Well, in that case, it's damn good to see you again, Obi-Wan." And he found himself enveloped in a firm bear hug that just about squeezed the breath from his lungs. Boil was burly even by Mandalorian standards and he practically lifted the redhead off his feet with that hug.

"Try not to break him, Boil!" 

"It's fine, I don't think he broke any ribs," Obi-Wan wheezed as he patted the other man on the back. "I'm glad to see you as well, Boil." 

"First rounds on Boil." Gregor teased and Obi-Wan had no sooner stepped back from one bear hug than he found himself enveloped in another one courtesy of Gregor. "It's been a while, sir. I mean, Obi-Wan."

Thankfully for the state of his ribs, Gregor's hug wasn't nearly as powerful as Boil's had been. 

"It's good to see you, Gregor. How have you been?”

“Doing quite well and the evening is just improving by the minute,” Gregor said cheerfully as he shot a smirk in Boil’s direction. The other man just rolled his eyes heavenward and muttered something uncomplimentary under his breath.

“And Boil? I understand congratulations are in order?” Obi-Wan queried curiously and that eased some of the grumpiness out of the man’s face. "You managed to talk Waxer into making an honest man out of you?" 

“Yes, sir. Going on four years now.” 

“And somehow Waxer hasn’t killed him yet.” Gregor quipped as he signaled the woman behind the bar to set them up with a round of shots. 

“Kark you, Gregor.” 

“Only in your dreams, _vod_.” 

Obi-Wan felt a pang of guilt at the realization of just how out of touch he’d truly become with his former squad. He hadn’t even heard a whisper about Boil and Waxer getting married and that had apparently been years before.

“You okay?” Cody asked, and Obi-Wan was struck with the realization even after all this time, the other man could apparently still read him like an open book. 

“Just realizing how much I’ve missed out on.” He said a little sadly. 

“You’re not the only one who fell out of touch but the important thing is, you’re here now.” Cody reassured him. “Come on, I’ll introduce you to the rest of the boys.” 

And that was how the next hour or so went with Obi-Wan catching up with both the veteran and newer members of Ghost Company. He eventually ended up at a table with Cody, Gregor, and Boil. He had pretty much given up all hope of going home tonight courtesy of the number of shots he’d taken in the past hour alone. 

He was currently leaning over to the side so he could get a good look at Boil’s phone because the moment he’d mentioned hearing the two men had adopted a little girl, the mustached man had chuffed up like a proud father and whipped out his phone so he could show Obi-Wan some photos. 

The brightly smiling little girl was missing one of her front teeth and was currently sporting bright teal hair that looked like it had come out of one of the brightly colored hair dye bottles Ahsoka broke out on the regular. “Love the hair.”

“I had zero say in that matter. Apparently she lost the tooth right before school picture day and she conned Waxer into letting her dye her hair so ‘no one would notice’ the gap.” Boil snorted with ill-disguised amusement. “She has him wrapped around her dainty little finger.”

“And you of course are completely immune.” Obi-Wan teased with a mischievous look.

“Look, one of us has to lay down the rules.” 

“Don’t let ‘em fool you, Obi-Wan, he’s just as bad as Waxer is when it comes to Numa.” Gregor said, shaking his head. 

“I have one of my own, I get it. Except Ahsoka is sixteen going on thirty and can verbally tap dance around both Anakin and me.” Obi-Wan admitted with a wry grin and obligingly pulled out his own phone so he could pull up a photo of both Anakin and Ahsoka. "I didn't even bother trying to try and stop her from dyeing her hair all manner of colors on a weekly basis. And she somehow convinced her school it's an expression of her cultural heritage which is such a glorious level of bantha poodoo that I just let her have it." 

“And I thought Numa was bad, I pity your bathroom, Kenobi.” Boil said with a laugh as he looked down at the phone screen. 

“She and Anakin share a bathroom which of course means they’re constantly on the edge of another world war every morning. Thankfully, this semester Anakin opted to take a later morning class and so an uneasy ceasefire has been called.” 

“I’ve been getting some worrisome photos from Waxer. One of our neighbor's tookas had kitten so I’m pretty sure I’m going to have that to look forward to when I get back home. Numa has been wanting one for a while now and that _di’kut_ is liable to be talked into adopting the whole litter if given half a chance.” 

“Let’s hope it doesn’t end up being that bad. Pets are good for children, it teaches them responsibility.”

“Now you sound like my _riduur_.” Boil said with fond exasperation in his voice. “Still, I asked him to wait till I was home so we could do it as a family. Her birthday is in a few months, I figure it’d make a nice birthday gift if nothing else. Assuming nothing comes up and my leave doesn’t get farkled.”

“I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure that doesn’t happen, Boil. Gods willing, you should be home with plenty of time to spare.” Cody assured him with a somber look on his face. “And the offer to transfer you back home to Protectors is still on the table any time you want to take it. I know Rex would love to have you around to help whip the shinies into shape.” 

“Yeah, I know, commander.” Boil said, expression turning a little mulish and Obi-Wan got the impression this wasn’t the first time the two of them have had this exact same conversation.”

“Seriously, _vod_ , you should take it. You don’t want to miss watching Numa grow up.” Gregor put in with more seriousness than Obi-Wan had seen out of him all night long. He suddenly felt as though he was intruding on a private situation and one he had no rights to witness.

“What, and leave the commander to have to deal with you all alone, _chakaar_? I’m not that cruel.” Boil snorted. 

"We still have Crys too!" 

"For now, but that girl of his has been making noises about wanting him to stick around more and he's over the moon for her. I'll bet you twenty credits he's going to fold like a house of cards the moment she asks him to take some cushy transfer back home." Boil pointed out a little gruffly. "Which, she's a fine lass and way better than that _di'kut_ deserves."

"Do you even have twenty credits to bet, _ner vod?_ " Gregor teased as he clapped a hand on Boil's shoulder. 

"I would if you weren't a kriffing cardsharp and a cheater at sabacc."

"Yet you still keep playing with me. I can't help you're terrible at the game, Boil."

"See! I ain't leaving the commander high and dry with such a disruptible character as you around to watch his back."

“I'm not dumb enough to play sabacc with him, to begin with." Cody drawled and he slanted an amused look over at Obi-Wan. "Besides, I’ve been dealing with Gregor for almost twenty years, I think I can manage.” 

“And he’s been abusing me for twenty years too, lemme tell you what. Ruining my good name with those kinds of accusations.” Gregor agreed with a laugh. 

“Perks of seniority. Case in point, why don’t you get us another round, Captain?” Cody said deadpan and slid some credits across the table towards Gregor. 

“See what I mean? Why don’t you bully the LT for once.”

“What can I say, I like him more.”

“ _Haar'chak!_ I get no respect around here,” Gregor exclaimed with a good-natured laugh and stood up. “Only cause you’re buying, sir.” 

“I probably shouldn’t.” Obi-Wan tried to bow out only to find himself being faced with three identical looks of skepticism.

“Don’t tell me being a civ has turned you into a complete lightweight, Kenobi.” 

“I do need to sober up enough sometime tonight to manage to drive home.”

“I already told you, you can rack out in the extra bed with me.” Cody reminded him softly.

“Yeah, you can sleep with the commander.” Boil said with a shit-eating grin that earned him a pointed look from Cody and elicited a bark of laughter from Gregor before he turned and wandered over to the bar. 

Cody looked like he was about to say something more when his phone started to ring. His ears were starting to turn red which betrayed his embarrassment as he pulled it out. It was almost midnight and Obi-Wan shot him a concerned look but the other man just offered him a wry looking smile. 

“Rex’s ears must have been burning. Excuse me for a moment.” He said as he excused himself and headed outside where he could answer the call in peace. 

“It’s almost a twelve-hour time difference back home.” Boil explained as they watched Cody exit the bar. “Rex is probably having lunch with the family so he’ll probably be a couple minutes.” 

“It must be hard, being so far from home.”

“Yeah, Jango has really been after him to come back home. Cody was the one he wanted running the Protectors but he got stuck with Rex instead.” Boil said with a dark look. 

“Really?” 

“Yep, practically groomed him for the job. Then the war happened and he ended up doing this instead. I think it really chapped his _shebs_ the commander went and decided to not fall neatly into line as he’d planned. I’m sure eventually, he’ll probably let himself get talked into it. Unless other plans come up instead.” There was a wealth of meaning in Boil’s words and Obi-Wan would have had to have been an idiot to not notice. 

“I’m not sure I catch your meaning, Boil.”

“I think you catch it all too well, Obi-Wan. He was a mess after you left. Been gone on you for years so if you’re not sticking around, don’t break his heart again.”

“I suppose I deserve that considering what happened before but that’s between Cody and me.” 

“I like you, Kenobi. You were a great CO and a decent enough fellow but Cody’s my friend and he’s always had a blind spot a kilometer wide when it comes to you.”

“I care about him too, you know,” Obi-Wan said softly. 

“And I believe you. But speaking from personal experience here? Trying to make a relationship work over long distances? Being forced to be in one place while your heart is halfway across the world in another place is hell.”

“And are you sure you’re not conflating your situation with Cody?” He couldn’t help but point out a little brittly 

“Heh, maybe a little bit. He and I are the only two people left of the original Ghost Company, yanno? Every year, familiar faces get replaced with new people. Gregor and Crys have been great additions to the team, Hell, Gregor and Cody go way back to their academy days but even he’s got his eye on retiring in a couple of years once he meets his twenty. Technically, he could take that same transfer the commander has been trying to shove down my throat and finish out his service back home.” 

Obi-Wan found himself touched by the stubborn loyalty that kept these men together after all these years. 

“Let me guess, Cody’s probably gotten the same offer.” 

“Of course. His _buir_ has been trying to convince him to transfer back home since the war ended. I think the commander was putting some serious thought into it too. But the two of you crossing paths again is probably putting a spanner in the works. Me personally? I don’t give a damn what grand plans Jango Fett might have for Cody. I just want him to be happy. I know, once upon a time he convinced himself you were the key to that happiness and he would have given up all of it for you.” 

“That's....a lot to think about, Boil.” And he wasn't sure he was ready to wrangle with that just yet considering how new and uncertain things were with Cody and him at the moment. 

“For what it’s worth? I hope the two of you manage to work it out. Cody deserves to be happy and from what I recall from the war, you two were a good team.”

“We were. I appreciate you trying to look out for Cody’s best interests.”

“Look, I know I’m a _shabuir_ and it’s not my place to say anything.”

“But he’s your friend, I get it. I really do. And I meant it, you have given me a lot to think about. I promise I will keep what you said in mind.” 

“That’s all I can ask for. Well, that and maybe not mention this to the commander. Otherwise, he’ll probably kick me in the _shebs_ from here to Mandalore.”

“My lips are sealed. Though if I might offer one word of advice?” 

“Be my guest.”

“You should consider taking that transfer. Gregor is right, you don’t want to miss watching your child grow up. And Cody definitely wouldn’t want you to put your life indefinitely on hold just for his sake.”

“Fierfek. Not you too, Kenobi.” 

“If everyone around you is saying the same thing, maybe you should listen.”

“I’ll think about it.”

“Did I just hear Boil said he’d actually think about something, Obi-Wan? Surely not, _kaysh mirsh solus_ , yanno?” Gregor teased as he plopped another round of shots down on the table. “Where did the commander go?”

“ _Copaani mirshmure'cye, ner vod?_ ” Boil growled at him threateningly but Gregor just laughed at him. 

“He’s taking a call from his brother,” Obi-Wan explained, in hopes of redirecting the conversation. 

“Speaking of, I think I’m gonna follow suit and call Waxer.” Boil murmured, reaching for one of the glasses. “It was good seeing you again, Obi-Wan. Don’t be a stranger, okay?”

“I won’t, I promise,” Obi-Wan assured him and picked up his glass so he could clink it against Boil’s.

“That’s the spirit. We might make a _Mando_ outta you yet.” He said with a wolfish grin and clinked his glass against Gregor’s before tossing it back like it was water. One final hearty slap to Obi-Wan’s back, he pushed off his stool and headed for the door. He very nearly slammed into Cody who tried to enter just as he was walking outside and they had to do an awkward half-step to avoid barreling into one another. They exchanged a few words and Cody clapped him on the shoulder by way of goodbye before approaching the table. 

There was a new sort of tension in the man’s body language and a somberness in his gaze that hadn’t been there before. Obi-Wan and Gregor exchanged a wordless glance. 

“I think I’m going to see if I can fleece a few more credits out of Kad’ika. I’ll catch you later, Obi-Wan.” Gregor said, excusing himself smoothly to give the two of them some privacy. 

Cody watched him go without a word and Obi-Wan reached out to touch his arm gently. “You okay?”

“Just….family stuff.” Somehow, he managed to say a lot without saying a whole lot with those three simple words. 

“Do you want to get out of here? I could use some fresh air.” 

“Yeah, sounds good to me.” They said their goodbyes and left the noise of the bar behind. Cody reached out and laced their fingers together in a light grip and Obi-Wan squeezed his in answer. They turned right automatically and started to meander in the direction of the hotel. 

“How is Rex?” 

“He’s fine, sends his regards.” 

Obi-Wan cocked a brow at that and Cody looked away a little guiltily. 

“He’s not happy. Thinks I’m being an idiot.”

“Because of this?” The red-head said, indicating their joined hands. 

“Among other things.” 

“I can understand his concern.”

“I don’t, it’s not his life, it’s mine.” A scowl started to darken Cody’s expression as his brows knit together in a frown. “I’m thirty-five years old. More than old enough to take care of myself.”

“And he’s your brother, he’s going to worry about you. It comes with the territory. And I’d say he has plenty of reason to be concerned. If you and I are going to go start down this road, we need to have a frank discussion about where we both see this going.” 

Cody looked like that was probably the very last thing he wanted to do and Obi-Wan’s heart went out to him. “You have a life and a family who loves you back in Mandalore. I have a life here. Let’s say you finish out your current contract and then what? Are you planning on returning to Mandalore as your family wants you to? Where does that leave this?”

“I just want you, Obi-Wan. That’s what I want when I look at the future. I don’t care if we live here or return home, I just want you.” Cody said frankly as he looked over at him. There was a brittleness in his expression, a vulnerability Obi-Wan wasn't used to seeing in the normally confident man's face. 

“You make it sound so simple, Cody.” Obi-Wan said with a flash of frustrated exasperation.

“Maybe it is for me. I know it might not be that cut and dry for you but for me it is that simple. I spent ten years trying to pretend that I was over you. I tried moving on, tried dating other people but every relationship felt hollow. Because at the end of the day, they weren’t who I really wanted. Now? I have a second chance at this and I’m not going to let that chance go to waste.” 

Obi-Wan found himself momentarily without words. Both because Cody, or at least the Cody he’d known, wasn’t the type of person to be so open and effusive about emotions. Not that he wasn’t emotionless, he’d just always been so good at compartmentalizing he’d been remarkably evenly keeled even in the middle of a shitshow like the war. 

Yet here he was, leaving everything on the table and a part of Obi-Wan almost envied that level of bravery. But then, bravery had never been Cody’s problem, had it? It also unnerved him a little bit because it was _a lot_. Obi-Wan knew he would probably do more than just bruise Cody’s ego or hurt his emotions if he handled this wrong and that was scary all in its own right. 

To his credit, the younger man seemed to realize just how big of a bomb he’s set off between them and took a subtle step back to give Obi-Wan some space. “I probably shouldn’t have led with so much heavy stuff, sorry. And I get you might not feel that way but you said you wanted honesty so there you go.” He said with a pensive look on his face. “What do _you_ want out of this, Obi-Wan?”

“I don’t know, it’s all happening a bit fast to be honest. I like you, Cody and the last thing I want to do is hurt you.”

“I don’t think you would ever do that on purpose. And I’m a big boy, if this doesn’t work out, I will survive. We could both a few days in and realize we don’t mesh as well as we expected to. I could find out you’re a Yag'Dhul Academy fan and that could prove to be an irrecoverable difference of opinion.” That last part was said jokingly and Obi-Wan bit back a laugh at the mention of perhaps the most divisive Limmie team in the entire league. It wasn’t surprising a Mandalorian would speak of that team with such derision but the humor did help dispel some of the tension.

“Oh, so that’s the breaking point, huh?”

“Yeah, I mean if you have that terrible a taste in your pro-ball then who knows where else it’ll spill over in your personal life. I also would never be able to take you home to meet my family because they might actually disown me if I was dating someone who supports YA.” 

Obi-Wan chuckled and reached up to wrap his hand around the nape of Cody’s neck to hold him still so he could lean in and kiss him softly. Both because he wanted to but also because he wanted to ease the last of the tension out of the air. It seemed to do the trick because he could feel the tight muscles in the other man’s neck and shoulders soften ever so slightly under his fingers. 

“You’ll be happy to know I’m pretty boring in my rooting for a Coruscanti United though I have been known to occasionally shift my alliances to Alderaan if they get further in the Cup.”

“So you like an underdog story. That's okay, Rex supports Bylluran Athletic so that’s not nearly as scandalous.” Cody teased and kissed him again. 

“Oh my, that is a pretty bold stance.”

“He actually dyed his hair once bright blue to match their team colors when they made it into the finals.” 

“Please tell me there are photos of this somewhere?” 

“Of course, like I would pass up that much blackmail material?” 

“Well, now that we know we don’t have to immediately break up over Limmie teams, are there any other dealbreakers I should know about?” 

“None that I can think of off the top of my head. Well, so long as you put the toilet seat down, but I'd like to think that’s just plain common courtesy. And to be honest, I think worrying about cohabitation isn’t something we’re going to have to worry about for a while. As you said, I have my commitments to the GAR for the foreseeable future.” 

“That definitely won’t be an issue and you’re correct, that is a bit further down the road for certain. I’m okay with just taking things as they come. See where this goes?” 

“Sounds good to me. I’ll be honest, there are probably going to be weeks at a time where I might drop out of contact for some reason or another. I’ll try and keep you abreast of the situation as much as I can but op-sec is going to take precedence a lot of the time.”

“I get it, I remember what it was like.” 

“I know, but it definitely became a problem with a couple of my past relationships.” 

“I understand and if it does become an issue, I’ll discuss it with you.”

“That’s all I can ask.”

“Though there is one thing I think we need to discuss."

"Sounds ominous," Cody said a little skeptical.

"Well, speaking of meeting the family…" 

"Oh. Yeah, I guess that is something that's going to happen. Never really had to deal with meeting someone's kids before." He said a little abashed and bemused. 

"It doesn't have to happen now but it should probably happen at some point. Though technically neither one is _my kid_. Anakin is technically my adopted brother and Ahsoka is a student I've probably become too attached to."

"They're your kids in all the ways that matter," Cody stated firmly. “My people, we have a saying. _’Aliit ori'shya tal'din.’_ ”

“Family is more than blood. I remember.” Obi-Wan translated and that earned him an approving smile from the Mandalorian. 

“That’s right, I forgot how good your grasp of _Mando’a_ is.” For some reason, Cody sounded oddly pleased by this. 

“Well, it certainly was a bonus considering they put me in charge of a regiment that had so many Mandalorians.” 

“Yeah but not every officer was that broad-minded I’m sorry to say.” 

Something in the other man’s voice had Obi-Wan looking at him a little more sharply. “Did something happen after I left Cody? Did they replace me with a terrible CO?”

Shadows flit through the other man’s eyes briefly and it was obvious Cody was choosing his words carefully before he spoke. “Not the 212th but not everyone was as lucky as we were. Rex and my brothers weren’t so lucky.”

Cody’s jaw tightened and he drew in a shaky sounding breath. “The day my brother got blown up? They shouldn’t have even been on that road. They put some new commander in charge of the 501st. I don’t know if he just hated Mandos or just didn’t care about how many men he lost but he sent them up that road knowing it was heavily mined because he was dead set on carrying out this stupidly suicidal frontal assault despite every intel and junior officer practically begging him to go another route. He didn’t care how many men he had to kill to accomplish the goal. Rex had to carry out those orders and it broke something inside of him.”

“Gods, I had no idea.” The idea that it could have easily been Cody didn’t escape Obi-Wan’s notice and he could tell it weighed on the man all the same. 

“That’s part of the reason he went home once the war was over. He said he was done fighting for the Republic. You remember what he was like, correct? He probably believed in the Republic more than any of us."

“But you stayed.”

“I still believe the world is better off with the Republic than without it. And I’ve known plenty of good officers and people to know you can’t just write the whole system off just because of a few bad jogun fruit. Besides, after that failed assault, it came out later he was secretly working for the Seppies the whole time. One of his own men shot him.”

“You’re a remarkable man, Cody.”

“I don’t know if I would go that far.” The other man said a little skeptically. 

“I would, and you can’t convince me otherwise.” Obi-Wan pointed out with another one of those serene smiles of his. 

“I guess I will just have to learn to live with it then.” Amusement colored Cody’s words and when he ducked his head again to kiss Obi-Wan the other man met him halfway. The realization this was happening struck him out of nowhere. Sure, maybe they were making big leaps and skipping a few crucial steps but Cody was finding it hard to regret it when Obi-Wan was kissing him back, seemingly just as eager for the contact as he was. 

Still, the whole thing had an almost surreal quality to it, like he’d wake up in a foxhole somewhere in the backend of nowhere only to realize this was all a fever dream. But no, this was happening, he really was standing there with Obi-Wan in his arms acting on almost fifteen years worth of banked desire and fantasies. 

And he’d be lying if he didn’t admit it made him a little giddy, like a kid who’d been unleashed in a candy store. 

This time, the kiss wasn’t nearly as playful or chaste as it had been before though and by the time they both came up for some much-needed air, there was a palpable sexual tension in the air. “I think perhaps we should head back to the hotel.” He suggested a little husky sounding and Cody would have had to have been dead or the world's dumbest man to miss the invitation in that statement. 

And he was most definitely neither one of those things. 

“Excellent idea.” Cody agreed with heat in his eyes as he closed his fingers around Obi-Wan’s one more time and they headed back in the direction of the hotel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a LOT of Mando'a and other assorted words in this chapter:  
> Aliit ori'shya tal'din - Family is more than blood.  
> Bantha Poodoo - Generalized non-Mando term meaning bantha fodder (aka it's bullshit)  
> Chakaar- General insult, technically means corpse robber-thief etc.  
> Copaani mirshmure'cye, ner vod - Are you looking for a smack in the face, mate?  
> Di’kut - Idiot  
> Farkled- Generalized SW term for a situation is messed up. Think FUBAR in modern military terminology  
> Fierfek- Huttese curse means Hex or in this term, damn  
> Haar'chak- Damn it!  
> Kaysh mirsh solus- He's an idiot (lit. his brain cell is lonely)  
> Mando’a- Mandalorian language  
> Mando- Mandalorian  
> Ner vod/Vod - (My) brother or in this case, mate as in friend  
> Riduur- Partner and in this case, husband  
> Shabuir- Extreme insult- jerk or in this case kind of on par with bastard  
> Shebs- Backside or ass


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will be the first to admit that not a lot happens in this chapter but I will forever hold a candle in my heartfor Obi-Wan's high-key thirst of in this chapter. We are in the home stretch now. If I can manage to get everything edited I think I'm going to post the last two chapters on Monday since the epilogue really isn't super long compared to the rest of the chapters in this fic. Which yet again, I would like to reiterate the sweet, summer child that I was thought would be 5 chapters, maybe 15K max. So go laugh hilariously at my original author's notes in chapter 1 which I am leaving up for both yours and my amusement.

Cody woke up to the unfamiliar but none-the-less pleasant sensation of having another warm body curled up against his. It took him a few bleary seconds to remember how that other warm body had gotten into his bed courtesy of sleep fogging his brain and a low-level headache no doubt brought on by the alcohol they’d drunk the night before. 

When he and Obi-Wan had gotten back to the room last night, they’d made out a little bit but had mostly laid there talking and catching up more. All in all, it hadn’t been a terrible way to spend an evening. And now waking up with Obi-Wan curled up in his arms and his head buried into that bright reddish-blond hair was pretty much the most perfect way he could imagine waking up. Right up until the point he squinted at the clock on the nightstand and realized it wasn’t even half-past six. His body’s own natural clock was working against him despite the fact they’d been up past two the evening before.

So he made the executive decision to say hang it to all military discipline and pulled Obi-Wan a little bit closer so he could burrow his nose back down into his hair and willing himself back to sleep. 

The next time he awoke, it was to the sensation of Obi-Wan slowly trying to creep out of the human-shaped octopus grip Cody had apparently gotten on the man in his sleep but unfortunately, even that slow jostling was enough to waken him. 

Cody found himself somewhat reluctant to let go and squeezed Obi-Wan lightly in a silent bid for him to cut it out and just go back to sleep instead. That earned him a laugh from the other man but Obi-Wan wasn’t going to be deterred so easily. 

“Honestly, are you a man or a starfish?” The redhead said, fondly exasperated as he managed to free his legs from Cody’s and that just earned him a disgruntled grunt and a sleepy frown from the other man. “I’d love to stay but nature is calling so you’re going to have to let me up, my dear.” 

Cody cracked open one eye at him and gave him a grumpy look but finally loosened his grip enough to let Obi-Wan escape and the redhead felt so bad he pushed one of the pillows at Cody as a poor substitute but the sleepy man accepted it and immediately pulled it close and buried his face into it. 

Charmed and bemused because he’d apparently forgotten Cody was not a morning person, Obi-Wan crawled out of bed and padded his way over to the bathroom so he could relieve himself and start the process of getting ready for the day. Much to his delight, he found an extra toothbrush in the amenities kit along with some toothpaste that he availed himself of. Afterward, he took a quick shower just to wash the last traces of last night’s alcohol which felt like it had oozed out of his pores and with some reluctance, pulled on yesterday’s underwear for lack of anything else to wear. 

He hadn’t exactly planned on getting drunk and spending the night with Cody and he definitely wasn’t looking forward to the amount of teasing he was going to get courtesy of Ahsoka and Anakin when he returned home. He could already hear their comments about walks of shame and other ridiculous accusations. Still, he couldn’t find it in himself to regret his choices at all, especially not when he wandered back out into the room and got a good look at the handsome man still clinging to that poor pillow in his sleep like it was a lifeline. 

Cody had kicked off some of the covers and Obi-Wan was afforded an almost unobstructed sight of those broad shoulders, strong arms and sleep mussed hair where it wasn't buried into the pillow. Not a bad view to wake up to at all, he admitted a little smugly to himself as he brewed himself a cup of tea before setting the machine up to boil a pot of caf in hopes the smell would help rouse the sleepy commander.

With that, he nudged back the curtains and let the early morning light spill into the room as he settled into a chair near the window with his tea and his phone. He had a few texts from Ahsoka and Anakin which he replied to. After that, he set about answering a few work emails until Cody finally seemed to stir once again in part Obi-Wan suspected due to the smell of caf that had begun to fill the small room. 

As he recalled, the smell of caf had been enough to rouse even the most exhausted Cody from sleep even out in the field when they’d been operating on less than two hours of very broken rest. Apparently, the trick still worked because the man shifted and sleepily tugged the pillow closer to him before deciding it just wasn’t the warm body he wanted because he raised his head and looked around the room for Obi-Wan until he finally found him by careening his head over his shoulder. He had to squint against the glare of the sunlight and grumpily rolled over until he was able to pin him with a squinty, mildly accusatory look. 

“Why are you all the way over there.” He absolutely did not pout, but he definitely sounded a little put out that Obi-Wan was subjecting him to both too much early morning light but also had apparently abandoned him in favor of that chair when he obviously could still be in bed cuddling with Cody. An idea the dark-haired man thought was pretty damned good in his humble, sleepy opinion.

“I was a little afraid to get too close lest you try your human octopus impression once again and I never escape the bed.”

“Don’t see a problem there,” Cody grumbled and scrubbed at his face tiredly before he dragged it up into his hair. It was long enough at the top to actually curl a little and Obi-Wan found himself charmed by the way bits and pieces of it were sticking up in all angles. Not quite the same kind of bedhead he could wake up with but Cody looked oddly soft at that moment with his sleep-filled eyes and stubble darkening his jaw. 

So much so that Obi-Wan gave into the overpowering need to put his tea and phone aside so he could crawl back into the bed much to the other man’s approval. 

Cody wrapped an arm around Obi-Wan and pulled him down so his still damp head lay in the crook of his shoulder much. He scrunched up his nose a little distastefully for a moment before deciding it was worth having Obi-Wan in his arms.

“I can’t stay for too long,” Obi-Wan cautioned and leaned up to press a kiss to the corner of Cody’s mouth. “We have a tradition of having family breakfast together on the weekends. With our schedules it’s sometimes the only time in the week we have time to spend together as a family.” He explained a little apologetically and Cody slowly dragged his hand up the length of Obi-Wan’s arm.

“I get it. We’re the same way whenever we can get enough _shebs_ in seats back home.” And he did get it and understood how important those little, small family moments meant. “Just gimme five minutes.”

“I’ll give you ten.” Obi-Wan teased with a chuckle and that earned him a lazy curl of a smile from the other man. 

“Ten whole minutes? That’s enough to give a man all sorts of ideas.” Cody said and this close, Obi-Wan could hear the rumble of his laugh and voice resonating near his ear.

“That might require more movement than I think you’re capable of right now, Cody. You’re a bit of a layabout, I’ve decided. How shocking,” He teased and splayed his hand against the other man’s chest and stroked his fingers through the fine dusting of hair there. He traced the length of a jagged scar that cut halfway across his pectoral. Obi-Wan vividly remembered him getting this thanks to some shrapnel that had penetrated his body armor. It had bled like crazy and he’d been afraid Cody was going to die right there. Afterward, the medics had informed him that a few centimeters to the left and it might have nicked his aorta or the heart. 

“That sounds suspiciously like a challenge to me.” Cody rumbled but when he looked down at Obi-Wan and saw the way he was mapping out that particular scar, he knew the other man’s head wasn’t in a place for bedroom games. Even hasty and probably questionably executed ones considering the time-crunch they were under. 

Instead, he laid his hand over Obi-Wan’s and curled his fingers around the other man’s hand trapped it there right over the steady beat of his heart. 

“Credit for your thoughts?” 

“Just admiring the view.” Obi-Wan murmured. “You’ve picked up a few more scars and I realized I didn’t know their story. There’s a lot I’ve missed out on in the past decade.”

“Comes with the territory. The new body armor they rolled out is lighter and more flexible but can’t take a beating quite the same as the stuff we used to wear in the war.” Cody didn’t ask if the scars bothered Obi-Wan because he knew they didn’t. Not like it had sometimes weirded out a couple of his civilian lovers. They’d looked at his scars and seen them as marks of violence rather than the badges of survival or in a few cases, stupidity like Cody viewed them to be. Obi-Wan had been a soldier himself and had earned a few of his own throughout the war. 

“But you’re not seeing as much action these days I hope?” 

“Not as much as we used to, no. The brass keeps talking about wanting me to take a break from active duty and take over more training courses. Says I have ‘valuable skills’ I could be passing onto new shinies.” Cody didn’t even need to make air-quotes to make his disgruntlement with that sentiment known in the tone of his voice. 

“They’re not wrong, you know. You have a lot of experience and were one of the best tacticians I ever served with. I’m sure they’re practically salivating over you coming up with training procedures.”

“I don’t want to be tied to a desk. I’m not built for that _osik_.” 

“I’m sure your trainers felt the same way once upon a time. But they help craft you and the rest of your _vod_ into some of the finest warriors in the GAR.” 

“Honestly the GAR could do with a few Mando training instructors. The caliber of soldiers and officers has definitely gone down in quality over the past few years.” Cody admitted with a disgruntled look. “They’re so green when they get to me, we practically have to teach them how to hold their deeces properly.”

“Sounds like you’re making their argument for taking on some training officer duties for them.”

“Bah. If I wanted to do that I could do it back home with the Protectors. _Buir_ has been trying to convince me to transfer back home for years. Rex too, he says he could use a few extra hands wrangling the shinies so I’d probably be doing the same damn thing there.” 

“Why haven’t you if you don’t mind my asking?” Obi-Wan asked propping up his head so he could look up at Cody more fully. 

“I like what I do. I don’t want to leave Ghost Company even if these days it barely feels like the same company. Besides...there’s not as many expectations of me here in the GAR. Not like it would be back home.” That last part was uttered almost like a confession, a guilt-laden admittance he didn’t dare air in front of others. “Besides, I like to think I do a lot of good serving in the capacity I am right now.”

“And you won’t be able to do that if you go back home?”

“My father.” Cody said with a sigh like that was an answer. And maybe for someone who had met Jango Fett, that was an answer. “He’s always made it clear he expected us to join the Protectors and that I was supposed to step up one day and take his place.”

“And you don’t want that, I take it?” 

“It feels a little disrespectful considering Rex has been busting his _shebs_ for years working as _Buir’s_ second in command. Sure I might be the oldest but Rex is the one who has sunk his blood, sweat, and tears into helping rebuild the Protectors. If anyone should get the gig, it’s him. Assuming he wants it. Though if he doesn't, I don’t know if my father can handle two sons going rogue.”

“I can understand his point of view a little bit, you always want what you hope will be best for your child. Anakin wanting to join up is a perfect example of that. I would definitely prefer he consider other avenues but at the end of the day it’s going to be his decision and I respect that. I’m sure your father understands that as well and the fact you and your brothers are adults who are going to pick your own paths in life.” 

“Yeah but it’s definitely easier to live life on my terms half a world away.” Cody admitted a little wryly. “But on the other hand, it’s hard being so far from my family. And there’s definitely some appeal in being able to wake up and drive over to my parents' house for dinner. Being able to watch Boba grow up. Do all the things an older brother is supposed to do for their kid brother.” 

There was a deep wealth of longing in Cody’s voice when he said that and Obi-Wan’s heart ached for him. He knew how family-oriented Mandalorians were as a whole and had noticed how close-knit the various members of the Fett family were in particular. Distant cousins or adoptees into the clan had been welcomed with open arms among their units and during downtime it had been an ongoing joke that if you were looking for one Fett in particular, you just had to look spot another one of them because they were probably on their way to hang out with the group or they were already ensconced in some small corner of the camp shooting the breeze or playing a game of cards. 

That wasn’t to say they’d been known to be exclusive, in point of fact they’d welcomed their fellow squadmates to join them because at least in a Mando’s eyes, the bonds of brotherhood forged in the war were just as relevant as those of blood. 

It occurred to Obi-Wan suddenly just how lonely Cody probably was considering it felt like most of his family had returned to Mandalore in some capacity or another. He still had Boil and Gregor but as Boil had pointed out last night, they were pretty much the last members of Cody’s original squad. 

Boil’s reluctance to retire suddenly made a lot more sense. 

“You should take some time off and go back home. Spend some time with your family.” Obi-Wan said suddenly, surprising even himself with those words. “You said it had been more than a year, right?”

“Yeah, it has been. And you’re right, I think maybe I am overdue a little time back home.” Cody was tempted to ask Obi-Wan if he had any interest in tagging along but his better-sense caught up with him because even he could see that he might be skipping a few relationship steps and milestones with that one. 

He wasn’t normally the type of man who dove headfirst into a relationship, he’d always been cautious and almost glacially slow at times in making the next step. But with Obi-Wan he found himself just blasting right past those previous hesitations. Sure, a part of it was the fact they knew one another but there was also an element of...something. Something he didn’t quite know how to put into words save that it just felt right. This felt right to him. 

“Okay, I guess it’s about that time, isn’t it?” Cody said, shooting a glance over at the clock. 

“Pretty much. Did you uh...you are welcome to join us for breakfast if you would like?” Obi-Wan suggested a little shyly and Cody recognized that relationship milestone as it whipped past. He wanted him to meet his family, his adopted kids. 

Sure, they’d talked about it last night in the abstract but this was family breakfast, an event Obi-Wan had already told him was something sacred and important to his family and he felt something warm settle into his chest. 

“I’ll never say no to a home-cooked meal.” He said, leaning down a little bit so he could kiss Obi-Wan lightly before he forced himself to sit up with no small amount of reluctance. 

“I wouldn’t get your hopes too far up. I can manage the basics but Anakin is an absolute disaster in the kitchen. Thankfully Ahsoka is there to make sure he stays away from the flatcake batter so we probably won’t have to worry about a potential kitchen fire.” 

“That bad, huh?” Cody said with a wince. 

“He’s gifted mechanically but when it comes to the domestic side of things, he’s a complete disaster. I’m a little ashamed to admit we spent the first couple of years living on take-out and frozen dinners.” 

Cody could picture that with charming ease actually and the mental image was amusing and a little endearing. “I’ll get a move on then.” He promised and disappeared into the bathroom. Obi-Wan could hear the shower turn on and busied himself with neatening up the bed out of habit and gulped down the last dredges of his tea. 

While Cody got ready, he finished pulling on his now utterly creased and wrinkled clothing from yesterday and just resigned himself to the amount of teasing in his near future. He was pouring some of the caf into a paper mug when the door of the bathroom opened up and Cody ducked out wearing just a towel around his waist. 

Obi-Wan very nearly poured hot caf all over his hand as his mouth went dry as a desert at the sight of a damp, mostly naked Cody making his way over to the dresser with a chagrined look on his face.

“Sorry, forgot to grab clothes.” He explained a little bashfully and quickly grabbed some clothing out of the dresser drawer and Obi-Wan couldn’t tear his eyes away if his life had depended on it. Especially not when he could see the definition of those well-developed gluts flex and strain against the thin cotton of the hotel towel when the man bent over to fetch some pants from the bottom drawer of the bureau. 

He also knew he’d gotten busted for his shameless gawking when Cody turned and caught him red-handed so to speak. The other man cocked a brow at him and maybe even looked a little pleased with the attention and he was absolutely smirking just a little bit as he strolled over to Obi-Wan who was now turning an interesting shade of red. 

“Is that caf for me?” Cody asked a little hopefully. 

“It is.” Obi-Wan managed, sounding a little strangled and hoarse because despite being on the wrong side of forty he was still capable of being horrifically turned on and embarrassed all at the same time like that time Qui-Gon had accidentally walked in on him watching porn when he’d been a horny sixteen years old. 

Except that horny fantasy was standing there in the flesh with water beading on his skin and dripping down his neck. All he had to do was take two steps and he knew Cody wouldn’t complain one bit if he bullied him backward onto the bed. 

But the knowledge he’d already told Ahsoka and Anakin they were leaving the hotel in a few minutes came flooding back in unwanted and like a cold bucket of water being doused over his head.

“Mmn, good man,” Cody said approvingly and traded that paper cup of caf for a kiss before turning to walk back into the bathroom. The rasp of his stubble stayed with Obi-Wan as he mournfully watched him go. “Give me five minutes.” 

And true to his word, he emerged from the bathroom exactly five minutes later freshly shaved and dressed in a comfortably worn pair of jeans and a collared short-sleeved shirt that hugged his shoulders nicely. “I didn’t really pack fancy for this trip but I figure that'll do for a family breakfast.”

“You look great.” Obi-Wan had spent the past few minutes wrangling his libido back into check. He found himself missing that early morning scruff and the riotous way Cody’s hair had curled in any direction it wanted to. He’d obviously put some kind of product in his hair to tame some of the curls and make them lay a little more flat and uniform against the top of his head. He found himself fighting the urge to drag his fingers through that neatly combed hair so he could muss it up a little bit and mentally shook his head at his own silliness. “Let me have your mug so I can top it up since the Cody I remember needed at least two cups in him to be considered vaguely human.”

“Heh, it might have grown to three over the years but I appreciate the gesture.” He’d obviously drank the first piping hot cup down because it was empty when he handed it over to the redhead and turned to grab up his wallet and phone which he slipped into his pocket.

“Luckily for you, we have plenty of caf at the house. Both Anakin and Ahsoka are big fans of it though I’m pretty sure it’s the flavored kind.” He felt the need to caution and once again, Obi-Wan was pleased to receive another kiss in exchange for the cup of coffee. That kind of casual affection had warmth spreading through his chest.

“That’s okay, I don’t mind. It’s not going to impugn my stone-cold badass rep to be seen enjoying a cup of flavored caf. Honestly, compared to the black sludge they feed us in the GAR, it’s an improvement.” Cody said with a chuckle and fitted a plastic lid on top of his cup. 

With that, the two of them slipped out of the hotel room and started to head for the garage. Cody shifted his cup to his other hand and it felt natural to lace their fingers together once more as they walked through the hotel. They didn’t run into any of Cody’s team which was a mixed blessing. Obi-Wan felt a little bad for taking Cody away on what was essentially their last morning of leave but he also wanted some time with the man to. He knew they’d cross paths later when he had to bring Cody back anyway. 

“Have you heard from Boil or Greggor?”

“They texted me and let me know they made it back to the hotel safe. I’m sure they’re nursing a couple of pretty spectacular hangovers”

“Probably, I’d almost say I felt sorry for them if Boil hadn’t tried to convince me to pickle my liver along with him.”

“Don’t be, that _chakaar_ deserves everything coming his way. He’s a big boy and he knows what he’s doing.”

“I know, which is why I don’t feel too bad for him.” Once they reached the car, Obi-Wan sent a quick text to let Anakin and Ahsoka know they were on their way. Cody reconnoitered their route on his phone since weekend traffic heading out of the city could sometimes be congested but the universe was in their favor today and they made good time and soon enough, they’d pulled up into the drive-way of the turn of the century bungalow that Obi-Wan had called home for the past eight years.

“Last chance to back out.” He warned playfully as he turned off the car. 

“I’m prepared to face the unholy terror of a couple of teenagers. Or, one teen and one young adult man. I do have four younger siblings, you know.” Cody said with a chuckle and brought up a hand to cup Obi-Wan’s jaw as he leaned over to gearshift to kiss him one last time. He didn’t know how the other man wanted to play things and figured this might be the last chance he got to kiss him for the foreseeable future so he wanted to make it a good one. “Now I’m ready.” 

Neither one of them noticed the subtle shift in the curtains where both Anakin and Ahsoka were shamelessly spying on them through the front window. 

Thus, they had no idea the ambush they were walking into once they walked through the door.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The much (?) anticipated family meeting and breakfast. Please note, there are passing mentions of graphic descriptions of violence in regards to the military and how awful that can be, especially during wartime. It is brief but it is there in case that is triggering to anyone. Just one more chapter to go, thank you to everyone who has stuck around so far! Also, regarding Mandalorians serving in the GAR when it's technically neutral? I have absolutely zero idea if this is a real thing save my limited knowledge of the fact that I know some US service pilots volunteered to go over to fight in the Battle of Britain years before the US was actually drawn into WWII. So I'm just BS'ing from there and totally not trying to have my cake and eat it too. 👀

Obi-Wan sensed something was afoot when he walked in the door to find both Anakin and Ahsoka sitting there on the couch seemingly captivated by their phones. 

"Good morning?" Their forced nonchalance was puzzling and Obi-Wan exchanged a glance with Cody as he closed the door behind them.

They both looked up almost in sync and Ahsoka broke out into a wide smile which had a little too many teeth to look anything but vaguely predatory. 

"Morning!" She chirped and tilted her head ever so slightly. Cody got the distinct feeling he was being sized up which was a little unsettling from a sixteen-year-old girl. "Good morning, new person. I'm going to go out on a limb and say you're Commander Cody?" 

"Did you have a nice night, Obi-Wan?" Anakin teased with a slow smile.

"I am, you must be Ahsoka and Anakin." Cody pasted on a pleasant smile, an expression he perfected over the years glad-handing senior officers. It was a perfectly affable yet utterly opaque look that gave away nothing of real substance. “Sorry for stealing Obi-Wan away last night. His old team and I wanted to catch up with him over a few too many drinks.” 

Obi-Wan just shot his adopted brother a thinly veiled look and readily backed up Cody’s statement as to why he hadn’t come home last night. “I’d forgotten how much alcohol Mandalorians can pack in over a game of Limmie so I fear I wasn’t in any state to drive. Thankfully, Cody had a second bed in his hotel.” 

That absolutely was not a lie either, it simply wasn't the entirety of the truth. Because there was a second bed in Cody’s room even if he hadn’t slept in it or even so much as touched it. But he’d laid down enough truth in that statement for both Anakin and Ahsoka to make their own inferences. 

“Now, who’s hungry?” Obi-Wan asked with forced cheer. 

“Me, can I help? I’m no gourmet chef but I can flip some flatcakes and eggs.” Cody immediately volunteered.

“You’re a guest, why don’t you relax. I’ll help Obi-Wan.” Ahsoka put in a little too quickly as she jumped to her feet. “I already got the bacon cooking in the oven.”

“That’s most helpful, thank you, Ahsoka.” Obi-Wan and Cody exchanged a wordless glance and each recognized this as a pretty classic divide and conquer strategy. 

Cody's eyebrows crept up a hair which was as subtle as a shrug which conveyed he was willing to play things by ear.

"Alright, but let me help clean up at least? I've done my fair share of KP duty as well." 

"In the military? Do you do that as an officer?" Anakin asked a little surprised.

"I do at home. Four younger siblings and a slew of cousins and other assorted relatives mean there's always some dishes that need scrubbing or garbage that needs to be taken out." He said with an easy smile that garnered a chuckle from Anakin and Ahsoka. 

Obi-Wan was smiling but for a different reason as he headed towards the kitchen. "I don't think you'll get any complaints out of anyone in this house about taking over dishwashing duties."

"That seems to be pretty universal the world over," Cody called after them as he suddenly found himself faced with Anakin. Well, this wasn't quite like dealing with any other wet behind the ears shiny but he'd certainly dealt with plenty of green kids Anakin's age to know what topics of conversation were more likely to be safe ones to touch upon so he settled on one of the overstuffed chairs situated near the fireplace.

Cody could just imagine Obi-Wan sitting here reading by a fire on a chilly winter night. There was even a tiny end table situated on either side of the fireplace with a coaster on it no doubt to protect the wood from a cup of tea.

"So, Anakin, Obi-Wan tells me you're almost done with your undergraduate degree. Something to do with engineering and robotics?” Cody asked with polite curiosity and the younger man seemed to perk up a little.

“That’s right. I like tinkering and machines, and always had a knack for it.”

“One of my younger brothers is really into technology though he’s more into programming and I believe in the cybersecurity side of things. He’s currently pursuing a degree in that which I’m sorry to say goes way over my head.”

“I’m pretty sure I can see Obi-Wan’s eyes start to glaze over every time I start talking about school.” 

“He’s definitely not overly interested in technology but I once saw him manually crunch the numbers and figure out the vectors needed to call in an airstrike when we were under enemy bombardment during the Battle of Christophsis. Our satlink had been cut, they’d bombed our FOB and most of our communications gear was useless so all we had was short-ranged radio and Obi-Wan whipped out a pair of binocs, a pen, and paper and called it in.” 

“ _Really_?” Anakin said with both surprise and maybe even a degree of newfound respect. 

“Yeah, he’s definitely old school but he saved our necks.” That day had also been the first time he actually really _noticed_ Obi-Wan and the kind of officer he truly was. Cody wasn’t ashamed to admit he’d also been both impressed and a little intrigued because competence and cool-headed determination under fire was a sexy combination in his book. 

“I had no idea. He never really talks about what he did during the war.” Anakin confessed with a small moue of frustration on his face. 

“He’s seen a lot of terrible things, it’s not easy to talk about watching your friends literally get blown into unidentifiable chunks of meat or seeing their body parts literally blown fifty feet away. Something that I am sorry to say is a real-life thing we saw happen during the war.” Cody said softly, his face grim and serious. “If he doesn’t want to talk about it, you should respect that.” 

“You don’t seem to have trouble talking about it.” The younger man pointed a little brittly. 

“We’re different people who deal with combat stress in different ways. It doesn’t make me stronger or a better soldier than him.” He pointed out calmly. “I can talk about it because I’ve put a lot of hard work into taking care of my mental health and have the added bonus of having an excellent support network of friends and family who have also served.” 

“He didn’t try and put you up to talking me out of joining, did he?” Anakin’s eyes narrowed suspiciously and that earned him a frown from the older man.

“Do you really think your brother would be that emotionally manipulative? I might not know what your family dynamic is like but the Obi-Wan I knew wouldn’t have pulled that kind of crap and I doubt he’s changed that much in the past decade.” 

The brunette had the grace to look ashamed and a little abashed as he looked away. “No, you’re right. He might get a little imaginative with his interpretations of the facts sometimes but he’s not the type to pull that. Or have someone else do his dirty work for him.” 

“He worries about you as all good brothers would. The military is a good career choice for some people. I’m probably a bit biased considering I’m Mandalorian and we tend to be pretty hardwired for war and service. It’s perfectly admirable wanting to serve. But war is a whole other beast entirely. I’ve seen both sides of the coin and served in both war and peacetime but for your brother, the military represents war, suffering, and a lot of senseless death.” He could see that he’d managed to capture the other man’s attention but Cody found himself carefully picking his words because he didn’t want to come off as advocating for either side of what was clearly a touchy subject between Anakin and Obi-Wan.

“It’s hard, seeing a lot of bright kids with their whole lives ahead of them get killed, or maimed for life. There’s so much potential that is senselessly wasted in a war on both sides of the conflict and for an officer like your brother, that burden is doubly hard. Or it should be if they are worth anything as a person or an officer. You have to live with the knowledge your choices could lead to the men and women who serve under you and trust that you will do right by them will mean the difference between life or death. And sometimes, you’re going to have to order those people to go out there and they are going to die. Maybe it gets easier the higher up you go where you’re dealing with a conflict from a macro level where whole companies or battalions are just numbers on a screen but it’s harder when those numbers have faces and you’ve talked to them about their girl back home or their families and what they plan to do when they get out.”

“I guess I never really thought about it like that.” 

“They do train you on how to deal with that sort of thing. And honestly, a certain level of detachment and a willingness to make those hard calls is expected of you. Your brother was one of the finest officers I ever served with. But I also saw it gut him emotionally the longer the war went on and the casualty lists just kept growing. Maybe if he served in a time like this, he might have a different viewpoint on the whole thing. I can’t say for certain.” 

“But you kept going, right? Even though it was awful?”

“Yes, but I didn’t have to make the hard choice he had to make between family or serving. Little Gods, I hope I never do.” But Cody knew if suddenly his parents and all of his brothers were suddenly gone, if it was just him and Boba, he’d have made the same choice Obi-Wan did because your family was the most important thing. “There isn’t a man or a woman in our company that ever begrudged him the choice he made to take that hardship discharge when he did. I hope he understands that if nothing else.” 

Something akin to guilt briefly crossed Anakin’s face then. “I used to worry that he resented me. Having to give up his career to take care of me because Quin-Gon asked him to.” The younger man finally said softly, his words hushed, and almost like he was in confession. “I fully expected I’d end up back in the group home where Qui-Gon found me. After my mom died, I didn’t really think anyone was going to adopt me. I’ll fully admit I had a bit of a chip on my shoulder and I was way past the cute, adoptable age and Qui-Gon just came out of nowhere and he said he was going to take care of me. Would see to it that I got a good education and I believed him.” 

Cody didn’t know who was more surprised by that confession, himself or Anakin and a part of his heart ached for the boy he must have been. “But then he died too and Obi-Wan shows up one day out of nowhere and says he’s going to raise me and well...I didn’t believe him. It felt too much like one of those cheesy afternoon specials. I made his life hell for a while there because I thought if I was a big enough pain in the ass he’d realize I wasn’t worth the effort and he’d do the smart thing and dump me back in the home. Cause that’s what adults did to kids who were too much of a pain.”

“That obviously didn’t work out quite as you expected, I take it?”

“Yeah, he definitely proved me wrong. Still, I felt like I was some obligation he had to fulfill. It took a lot of years and a lot of therapy for me to realize he wasn’t just sticking around because he’d made a promise to a dead man.”

“You’re his brother. The way he lights up when he talks about you or Ahsoka, it’s plain to see how much he loves both of you.”

“I get that now. And well, as his brother I supposed I should ask, the two of you? How is that going to work?”

Cody hadn’t expected Anakin to just come outright and ask him like that and some of his surprise must have shown because the younger man just gave him a slightly exasperated look of pity.

“Come off it, don’t insult either of us by playing dumb. You’re active duty, right? So you’re going to be deployed elsewhere I’m assuming. And you’re Mandalorian on top of that. How does that even work with Mandalore technically being a neutral state?”

“We’re an all-volunteer force. We’re still loyal to Mandalore but we volunteered to serve under the Republic back during the war. And I’ve opted to continue renewing that contract even after the war ended. I’m eligible for full Republican citizenship if I wanted to go that route and once I reach twenty years of service I’ll have the option to choose if I want to retire and gain a pension courtesy of the GAR or I can go back home to Mandalore and they’ll honor that commitment thanks to the treaty they signed with the Republic back when the war started. A lot of my people opted to take the offer to return back home and be folded back into the Mandalorian military structure or depending on how long they’d served, they could opt for limited benefits packages and the offer to cover continuing education so a lot of them took that option and went home once the fighting was over.”

“So what’re your long-term plans then? Serve out your twenty years then retire here? Mandalore? How’s a relationship with Obi-Wan going to play out in that scenario?”

“I don’t want to put the cart before the eopie. Right now, we’re just going to play it by ear. See if we can even make this last long-term over a distance, hopefully, without the same _di'kutla_ mistakes we made last time.”

“Oh, I didn’t know that there was the last time,” Anakin said, eyes widening and Cody couldn’t quite mask his wince.

“There wasn't anything before. Just...wasted potential and no, before you get it in your head, him coming home to take care of you had nothing to do with that either. Neither one of us had the _gett'se_ to actually say something and we let that opportunity pass us by.”

Something he said must have struck a chord with the younger man because Anakin sat up a little straighter. “But the two of you are deciding to try this time?”

“Second chances don’t come around very often. I can’t tell you what the future is going to be like, Anakin. Or even where we’re going to be six months or a year from now. No one wants to live their lives mired down with regrets because of the chances they didn’t take. It might not work out between your brother and me but I think we both will feel better for having tried than not.”

“Right,” Anakin said with a strange look on his face. “Would you excuse me?” That was perfunctory at best because the young man was already on his feet with his phone in hand hurrying towards the back of the house. 

Cody was left, a little unsure what he was supposed to do and if the other man was going to come back any time soon. Something in his body language told him that wasn’t going to happen because he’d certainly looked like a man on a mission.

Meanwhile, while he was left twiddling his proverbial thumbs, Ahsoka and Obi-Wan had settled into a familiar rhythm in the kitchen. Obi-Wan busied himself with warming up a well-seasoned cast-iron skillet for the eggs while Ahsoka started the mix for the flatcakes. The smell of roasting bacon already filled the kitchen and sharpened Obi-Wan’s hunger further. 

“I don’t know about you but I’m absolutely famished.” While the pan was heating up, he turned to start a pot of caf much to Ahsoka’s obvious surprise and disbelief.

“You’re making caf?”

“Cody’s just about as addicted to the stuff like you and Anakin. Maybe more considering he told me he’s upped his minimal daily intake to at least three cups of that dreck.”

“Ha! That’s hilarious.” Ahsoka snickered as she finished mixing the batter together and set the bowl down so it could rest for a few minutes.

“What?”

“You somehow found someone who apparently loves caf as much as you love tea. It’s like the whole star-crossed lovers' trope in real life.”

“I think you’re being a bit hyperbolic, my dear.”

“I dunno, you seem to have some pretty strong opinions about caf and it’s inferiority to tea. Is he aware this is a bit of a hot-button issue with you?”

“That was one time.” 

“Definitely more than once.” 

“Well, Cody put up with me for three years and is well aware I prefer tea to caf. We’ve probably had that very debate at some point though I don’t recall it at the moment. I think he knows what he’s getting into.”

“I love you’re not even trying to pretend that the two of you didn’t hook up last night.” 

Obi-Wan felt his face heat up in a flush. “Ahsoka.” He chided but his voice sounded a little strangled even to his own ears. 

“Ahem. What did or did not happen is certainly not something I am going to be discussing with you and I would ask you to kindly butt out of it.” He absolutely was _not_ discussing his hypothetical sex life with a sixteen-year-old! 

“Fine, keep your secrets. But I should tell you I totally saw the two of you making out in the car before you came in.”

“Oh my god.” Obi-Wan groaned and gave in to the urge to bury his red-hot face briefly into his hands. “Not. Discussing. This.” 

“You don’t have to tell me all the juicy details. But uh, the two of you are a thing now?”

“We’re tentatively exploring the option.”

“Didn’t seem too tentative to me,” Ahsoka muttered to herself and moved to test the heat of the electric griddle she’d set up by dashing a few drops of water on the cooktop. When they sizzled and danced she knew it was ready and started to spoon the batter out onto the griddle.

“He does seem nice, not really what I was picturing though.” 

“How so?” He knew better than to let himself be baited into continuing this conversation but he felt an almost knee-jerk need to defend Cody.

“Well, I’ve met plenty of career military types and he’s a Mando to boot. Guess I expected something else. Not that you’d be interested in him if he was some knuckle-dragging grunt who is only in it for the violence or the thrill of the kill.” 

“No, that’s definitely not Cody. That’s not to say he can’t be an absolute madman on the battle-field because he definitely can but he’s always been able to compartmentalize those aspects of his personality with admirable ease. Even when we were under the worst kind of stress he has always been a good, decent man.” 

“Then I’m happy for you. You deserve a good, decent man.” Ahsoka said with an earnest look and Obi-Wan smiled as he reached over to drop an affectionate kiss to the top of her head in between flipping eggs. 

“Thank you, my dear, that means a lot to me.” 

“Do I smell caf?” The object of their discussion suddenly asked as he ducked his head through the door with a hopeful look on his face. 

“How did I know that was going to get your attention?” Obi-Wan teased with a fond look and gestured for Cody to help himself. “Mugs are above you.”

“Pretty sure the smell of caf has risen me from the dead or near enough to it at least twice.” Cody teased right back. “Ahsoka, would you like a cup?”

“Please, thank you.”

“I know you don’t want any, Obi-Wan but I could probably brew you a cup of tea while you two finish up here? Anakin had something to do so I’m just sitting around being useless.” 

“If it’ll make you feel better, by my guest.” 

“Thank you,” It was a bit of a tight fit with the three of them in the kitchen but Cody only had to encroach upon their side long enough to fill the electric kettle. “Cream or sugar, Ahsoka?”

“Black is fine.” Ahsoka said and finished her first batch of flatcakes which she stacked on a nearby plate. She accepted a cup of caf from the dark-haired man with a smile and a murmured thanks before turning her attention back to pouring out a fresh batch of flatcakes. “I hope everyone is hungry because I made a double batch.”

“Starving.” Both Obi-Wan and Cody said at the same time and all three of them broke out into laughter. 

“How many eggs do you want, Cody? And how do you like them cooked?” Obi-Wan asked while cracking a few more eggs into the skillet, he knew how Ahsoka and Anakin liked their eggs cooked but Cody was a bit of an unknown vector and he was surprised to realize he didn’t know that little tidbit about the man despite having served with him for years. Admittedly, the closest they’d gotten to an egg in the military had been rubbery, reconstituted powdered egg product they made in huge, bland batches in the mess hall and that was hardly anyone’s preferred method of egg cooking. 

“Two’s fine and I’m not picky. Anything but a powdered egg is good with me.”

“Gods, I was just thinking about that and how it very nearly turned me off to eggs for life.”

“You smother it with enough hot sauce, it’s almost edible but there’s nothing you can do about the taste of day-old rubber that’s for sure.” Cody agreed with a grimace as he brought his mug up to take a sip from it. He was reading the brewing instructions on a tin of tea he’d drawn from the cupboard that was labeled as a breakfast blend with all the intensity he would have paid to an instruction manual on a new weapon schematic. 

Once he knew the temperature the water needed to brew at he set the kettle and leaned against the cupboard to enjoy his caf. 

“So how much more time do you have in the capital, Cody?” Ahsoka asked curiously as she shot a look over her shoulder at the man. 

“We’re shipping out tonight sadly. This was a pretty short libo I’m sorry to say. We’ll be billeted in Carida for the foreseeable future.” 

“Hopefully you’ll get some more time to come back here. Carida isn’t too far away.” She said, shooting a loaded look Obi-Wan’s way and the man pretended to busy himself with flipping his eggs. 

“That would be nice, yes.” Cody agreed with another one of those opaque, bland smiles. The kettle finally finished boiling so it gave the man an excuse to duck the rather uncertain topic of conversation by making himself busy fixing Obi-Wan’s cup of tea. 

After that, breakfast came together rather quickly. Cody offered to set the table while Obi-Wan pulled the bacon from the oven and started to stack the slices on a plate. Ahsoka finished with the flatcakes and left to fetch Anakin which gave the two of them a few moments alone.

“So uh...they’re aware something is going on between us.” Cody put in quietly. “You’re brother wasn’t exactly subtle in his line of questioning.”

“Of course he wasn’t. Subtly and Anakin are rarely used together in the same sentence.” Obi-Wan said with a sign. “Ahsoka knows as well. Apparently she saw us in the car.”

“Oh.” 

“Indeed, but the tooka is out of the bag now so we might as well go with it. I hope Anakin wasn’t too rude about the whole thing?” Obi-Wan asked as he dropped off the bacon on the table. He paused long enough to touch Cody’s forearm and the other man shook his head with a smile. 

“No, we had a very interesting conversation but he wasn’t unpleasant in any way. He seems like a nice kid. Maybe a little too sensitive, I’m not sure he’s ready for the slap to the face that the military can be though.” 

“Yes, I worry about that as well.” The redhead agreed with a worried little frown. Because he didn’t like seeing that look on Obi-Wan’s face, Cody reached out to lightly wrap his hand against the nape of the man’s neck and stroked his fingers there lightly. 

“But I also think he has it in him to adapt to it if he has to. The kid’s got some steel in his spine, he’s a survivor.” He said as he affectionately pressed his forehead to Obi-Wan’s in a brief _kov'nynir_. Obi-Wan accepted that affection happily and just allowed himself a moment to enjoy the closeness of the other man. 

He pulled away because he could hear the sound of Anakin and Ahsoka’s voices getting closer and went back to the counter to start fetching everyone’s plates which he set down on the table in everyone’s customary spot. The table was small and suited their needs but there was a fourth spot that worked out perfectly for the addition of Cody at their table. 

The platter of flatcakes barely fit but they managed to make everything work and soon enough, all four of them were seated and digging into their breakfasts with a voracious appetite. Conversation lagged for the moment in favor of everyone eating their fill and stuffing themselves silly. 

They’d no sooner finished breakfast than Anakin was on his feet. “I hate to cut and run but I have uh...thing to do. I’ll be back later.” He said decidedly cryptically. “It was nice meeting you, Cody.” 

“But-” Obi-Wan started to protest only to fall silent when Ashoka shook her head ever so slightly. 

“Can’t talk, I’ll see you later!” And with that, Anakin hurried out the kitchen and soon after, they heard the front door slam shut.

“I think he has a date with Padmé.” Ahsoka explained. “At least, I think he was talking to her on the phone when I went and got him for breakfast. I’ll let you know once I get more info out of him.” 

“Don’t stress him out needlessly over this. You know how nervy he gets when it comes to her.” 

“I know, I promise I won’t pry too much into his love life. Or yours.” She said with an impish grin as she climbed to her feet. “Speaking of which, I’ll leave you two love-birds to it. I’ve got a paper to write.” 

“Nice meeting you?” Cody offered as she pushed her chair back under the table and did the same to Anakin’s since he’d predictably forgotten to do so.

“You too! Mind if I add you on the holonetwork?”

“Uh, sure? I’m not really active on it though?” The dark-haired man said a little startled. 

“You can’t be as bad as Obi-Wan.” She said with a laugh as she stepped out of the kitchen and her footsteps retreated up the hallway.

“Well, I guess we’re stuck with the dishes.” Obi-Wan mused with a hefty dosage of exasperation in his voice. 

“You cooked, I’ll clean, I think that was the deal.” Cody pointed out with a smile as he stood and started to gather up the dishes from the table.

“That was before I knew Anakin was going to skive off and leave you to do the whole thing alone. Many hands make light work. Besides, if we do this quickly enough, maybe I’ll have a chance to show you my garden before I need to take you back into the city.” 

“We still have a couple of hours yet.”

“True, but you still need to pack and I don’t want to monopolize what little time you still have left.”

Cody reached out to stop Obi-Wan when the other man started to dump some dishes into the sink. “Hey? There’s nowhere else I would rather be right now.” That was said with such earnestness, it had something solid settling into Obi-Wan’s chest and for a moment it was almost painful and a little scary how much emotion he felt for this man. 

“Hmmn, same.” He said with a hum and was smiling as he leaned in to briefly kiss Cody. After that, they both settled in to make quick work of the dishes and clean up the kitchen. With two people, it didn’t take too long and soon enough they’d each grabbed fresh refills of their chosen drinks and had wandered outside into the lush riot of color and greenery that was Obi-Wan’s garden. 

There wasn’t an overly large yard but the man had obviously sunk a lot of time and effort into creating a private oasis for himself. A few free-standing planters obviously earmarked for some kind of vegetable gardening were already showing a lot of growth through Cody couldn’t say for certain what sorts of vegetables were being grown. But it wasn’t only sensible gardening that had transformed the backyard into something magical. He had flowering bushes and other colorful plants growing in what seemed like carefully controlled chaos with a path that ended in an artificial alcove with a covered swing. The foliage was thick enough where you couldn't see the house from where they were standing.

"Wow." That felt like a monumental understatement. "I guess I know if I ever need a last-minute gift idea that I probably couldn't go wrong with a houseplant."

Obi-Wan didn't even try and pretend like he wasn't preening just a little. "I find it very meditative. And it's the one part of the house that I can definitively call mine. Anakin kills plants just looking at them and Ahsoka had little interest so I get to come out here after a long day and work out my stress pulling weeds or planting my next set of plants in preparation of the coming season."

"Winter must be pretty long for you then," Cody observed as they settled on the swing. It glided smoothly on well-oiled chains which spoke to a lot of usage and care on Obi-Wan’s part. 

“I might have a small jungle set up in my room as well.”

“Heh, good to know. I guess I can’t begrudge you that after what feels like three years spent busting our _shebs_ going from what felt like one desert to a rock-filled wasteland to yet another desert.”

“Don’t forget about that swamp on Felucia.” Obi-Wan reminded him with a wry smile.

“Little Gods, I’ve spent the past ten years trying to forget about that, thank you very much. I had leeches in places no leech should ever be.” Cody said with an exaggerated shudder. 

Obi-Wan laughed outright at that and leaned his shoulder against Cody’s affectionately. “Sorry to bring up such a terrible memory.”

“It’s fine, I just cannot look at a standing pool of water and not get the heebie-jeebies.”

“I don’t think you’ll have to worry about that at Carida if memory serves correctly.”

“No, not too many swamps there. Lots of mountains and chilly air as I recall. But it’s pretty centrally located for rapid deployment which I think is why they’re sending us there.” 

“It’s a four hour time difference, right? We should probably figure out how we’re going to stay in contact here since winging it didn’t really work out so well the last time.”

“You’re right, on both fronts.” To give himself something to do, Cody reached out laced his fingers between Obi-Wan’s in a light grip. “What’s your bedtime?”

“I typically try and get in bed around ten or eleven.” 

“Hmmn, depending on what time I get off duty, I could try calling a couple of nights a week. There are also video calls if you feel up for that. And assuming that ancient phone of yours can support it.” 

“I’m sure I can convince Anakin or Ahsoka to show me how, if needs be and if I have to, I know I’ve got an upgrade available.”

“I appreciate your sacrifice in upgrading to the modern tech era.” The dark-haired man teased and Obi-Wan elbowed him lightly. 

“The things I do for you.” 

“In all seriousness though, I do appreciate it. I know trying to make this work, it’s not going to be easy.” Cody said seriously and made a sort of vague gesture to indicate everything. “I don’t think we’re teenagers where we need instant, constant communication and with the time difference it’s definitely going to take some finagling but all relationships take work, especially long-distance relationships.” 

“I think we’re both old enough to accept what is realistic, yes. But I am glad we are defining things in more concrete terms.”

“Exactly. Older and wiser supposedly, right?” 

“Yes, we’re practically geriatrics,” Obi-Wan said deadpan and that had them both snorting at the sheer ridiculousness of the statement because honestly!

“If I do find myself suddenly being deployed, I’ll try and give you a heads up before we go radio-silent.” 

“But you won’t always be able to do that, I remember how hectic things can get.” 

“Exactly, but I will let you know I’m okay as soon as I’m able to make contact. I’ve worked out a system with my family which I think can be applied to us pretty seamlessly.” Cody mused with a contemplative look on his face. “And speaking of…”

“Ooo, ominous.” The redhead said, using humor to deflect from the sudden fission of nerves that settled into the pit of his stomach.

“There’s a very good chance my family already knows something is up between us. Never underestimate the power of the Fett family gossip vine. You okay with that? I’ll do what I can to keep the wolves at bay but don’t be surprised if you wake up and suddenly have fifty random friend requests on the holonetwork because they really are that nosy and incapable of keeping their noses out of my business.” This was said with a mixture of exasperation and wry fondness. 

“I get it and if that situation comes up, we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it. I’m not interested in hiding this. Yes, I think we should take it at a sensible pace but we both know what we want at least in the short term to medium term I think it’s safe to say.” 

“I think so. But I do think I am overdue going back home so I’m going to put in a request for a more extended leave. I might not be able to come back here for a fair amount of time, are you okay with that?”

“Not at all, family is important and they miss you wildly I’m sure. I know if I were in your parents' shoes and I hadn’t seen either Anakin or Ahsoka in that long, well I probably would have said kriff it and come to them by that point so I respect their self-control.”

That garnered a real laugh and Cody grinned with boyish delight. “Trust me, my parents have certainly threatened to do that very thing. Rex has too actually. They get I have responsibilities here but I know they miss me and I miss them. That food last night really kind of brought that home. How much I’ve missed something as simple as a home-cooked meal.”

“Then do it, you deserve it. I can wait and we’ll have video chat so it’s not like I’m not going to see you.”

“Exactly, but just putting it out there now, I would like to take you home sometime. Doesn’t have to be this trip but at some point, I would like to show you where I grew up and yes, introduce you to my family and you can catch up with some of the lads like Rex and Waxer. Meet Numa, stuff like that.”

“Maybe not this trip, I think you need some time with your family without the added stress of having to split your attention with a guest. But yes, I would like that at some point. I’ve been to Mandalore but didn’t really travel beyond Sundari and that general area.”

“The northern islands are completely different, it’s rugged and brutal but beautiful.” There was no mistaking the longing in Cody’s voice when he spoke of his home. “I may be a little bit biased though.” 

“Just a bit, but understandably so.” Obi-Wan murmured and leaned his head on Cody’s shoulder because he could and because he knew he needed to stock up these pleasant memories of the future. 

Cody seemed to pick up on his mood without needing to say a word and let go of Obi-Wan’s hand so he could wrap his arm around the other man’s shoulders instead. There were still a lot of things they needed to discuss, boundaries and expectations that needed to be set but for now, sitting there in Obi-Wan’s lushly landscaped garden just snuggling and enjoying the sunshine seemed like the perfect way to spend a few minutes. Eventually they’d have to get up, Cody would have to go back to his hotel room and pack up but they still had time to just enjoy this moment to its fullest extent.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Mando'a**  
>  _Di'kutla_ \- Idiotic  
>  _Gett'se_ \- Nuts, in this case of the male genitalia variety. I was going to make a joke about not the kind you eat but that could potentially be a lie. I don't know your life.  
>  _Kov'nynir_ \- Head-Butt in this case, the soft and affection press of foreheads that counts as a kiss between two armored Mando'ade.  
>  _Shebs_ \- Buttocks or ass.  
> Just one more chapter to go, I did not have time to finish proofing it this morning and will do so on my lunch hour so look for it a little hit later today. Also, you can fight me over Obi-Wan having a greenthumb. Agricorps!Obi-Wan is definitely a favorite flavor or Obi-Wan for me and I desperately wish for more of this AU. You can pry him having a way with plants from my cold, dead fingers. LOL


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We are finally at the end, thank you to everyone who has commented, left a kudo etc. Ya'll have definitely sent me over the moon with glee. I am beyond happy people are enjoying this ridiculous little AU of mine. As I've said before, I fully intend on writing more stuff for this verse including yes, the inevitable meeting of Obi-Wan vs the Fett clan which will happen soon, assuming my muses decide to cooperate. Feel free to hit me up over on [ tumblr](https://bylightofdawn.tumblr.com/) if you want to bounce any potential ideas off me or just want to chat about this fic or any other thing I write.

**Nine months later...**

The sun hadn’t even fully risen by the time Obi-Wan pulled into a parking space in the visitor’s lot at the GAR base. There was a chill in the air that nipped at his cheeks when he dared crack open his car door. Unlike with commercial flights, he had no way of verifying ahead of time whether or not Cody’s flight was on schedule. 

Thankfully, his old military ID bought him a little bit of good-will with the chilly looking guards at the guardhouse who informed him that the cargo plane flying in from Carida was on schedule and after checking his name against the list of authorized visitors, they let him past the cordon to join the other people waiting on the tarmac.

It had been almost two months since he’d last seen Cody and that had only been for one brief weekend when Obi-Wan had flown out to Carida to visit him. They’d done their best to keep up communications and for the most part, were fairly successful. The advent of more readily available video conferencing software certainly helped both save on both their mobile bills and at least gave some semblance the other man was there when they could share even a quick five or ten-minute video call. 

Navigating a long-distance relationship was definitely a lot of work, more so than perhaps Obi-Wan had initially suspected it would be. Sure, they talked often but there was definitely a sort of longing that came with wanting to reach out and touch his lover only to be separated by thousands of kilometers. 

Sure, the weekend they’d spent together in Carida had been quite….nice. They’d spent a lot of time in bed exploring the more physical aspects of their relationship and that certainly helped a lot but Obi-Wan had definitely missed the absence of Cody in his bed during the long, cold winter nights this year.

This was patently ridiculous considering he’d slept alone for a decade with no problem but this year, it just felt colder and more dreary than normal. He burrowed himself deeper into the collar of his jacket and exchanged a wan smile with a tired-looking woman who had a toddler on one hip and another slightly older boy who was playing with a plastic airplane. Apparently security hadn’t allowed her to bring her stroller past the security cordon. 

Obi-Wan wasn’t sure if it was just a security measure against bringing contraband onto the base or because they were concerned it would somehow end up out on the runway but the toddler definitely didn't look happy to be awake and made their displeasure known. Despite the early hour, there was a small group of people anxiously willing to brave the near-freezing temperatures while the less impatient and probably smarter ones stayed in their warm cars waiting for their loved ones to disembark. 

He was seriously debating the wisdom in just retreating back to his car when he reached the bottom of his travel mug and had no more tea to warm his belly. But that was when he heard the distant distinctive roar of a cargo plane engines, he opted to stay there instead. The plane eventually dipped out of the gray, overcast cloud-cover and touched down. 

Obi-Wan felt a twinge of memory sensation of having suffered through more than his fair share of those bone-jarring, butt-numbing landings. Cody could have opted to fly in on a civilian plane but it would have cut almost an extra day into his leave navigating various airports and neither he nor Obi-Wan wanted to waste any of the precious time they could get together. 

Cody was technically on his way to his new duty station where he’d agreed to take over an officer’s training course for the next few months at a base just an hour and a half outside of the capital. He’d admitted the closeness to Obi-Wan had been part of the reason he’d agreed to sign up to take over the training course for another trainer who’d been injured while off-duty and had been facing a rather lengthy recovery period. 

Obi-Wan was selfish enough that he didn’t care because it meant at least for the next couple of months, Cody was in the country and they could see one another every weekend if they wanted to. The drive was a bit too much to make daily but being able to spend even a day or two together sounded pretty damned good to him at this point. 

The plane taxied around slowly and finally came to a halt about fifty meters away and a palpable excitement gathered in the small crowd as the hatch opened and the soldiers who’d hitched a ride started stepping off the plane and onto the tarmac. 

More than a few of them spotted their loved ones and broke out into a jog to more quickly meet them in a sometimes tearful or heartfelt reunion that had a tangle of emotion tightening in Obi-Wan’s chest. It was both sympathetic empathy and a knife-edge of pained understanding because he _got it_. 

Cody was one of the last ones off the plane, something Obi-Wan suspected was just ingrained in him down to the core of him. Last one on and last one off; always making sure his fellow soldiers were taking care of. It made him an excellent officer and was a trait Obi-Wan had shared all those years ago so he didn’t begrudge him it. 

Eventually, though, he stepped off the plane in a rumpled set of BDU’s with his duffle in hand and his eyes were automatically scanning the tarmac for Obi-Wan. When he sighted him, a relieved looking grin broke out on his face. He didn’t break out in a jog but Cody definitely covered the distance between them at a quick double-time trot. 

“It’s freezing out here, are you crazy? You could have waited in the car.” He said with a laugh as he dropped the duffle and Obi-Wan immediately stepped in to throw his arms around the other man. Despite Cody’s chastisement, the other man wrapped an arm around his waist as he brought his gloved hand up to fondly cup Obi-Wan’s jaw. 

Heedless of the fact they were standing there on the tarmac, the dark-haired soldier leaned in and kissed the other man soundly. There was an edge of that same desperate impatience Obi-Wan felt to the in that hurried kiss. For the briefest of moments, everything else melted away and it was just the two of them on the tarmac but then another chilly gust of wind blew in and buffeted them sharply. 

“Fierfek it’s cold. Let’s get out of here before you catch your death.” Cody murmured as they broke away. He stooped down to pick up his duffle and the two of them hurried back out through the security cordon and towards Obi-Wan’s car.

The moment they were in the car, Obi-Wan started it up and turned the heater up on full blast. Thankfully, the engine was still warm and soon enough, there was warm air piping out of the vents and Obi-Wan pulled off his gloves so he could hold the ice-cubes that were masquerading as his fingers up to the vents and started to try and re-warm them. 

“How was the flight?”

“Long and cold. Been freezing my _shebs_ off for months, honestly. Meanwhile, Rex, the _shabuir_ , has been sending me pictures of him and the twins enjoying days down at the beach.” Cody said with a huff but there was amusement gleaming in his eyes which betrayed him. “He’s lucky he’s across the kriffin’ world so I can’t kick his _shebs_ from here to Sundari.” 

“Little brothers will be like that. At least it’s warmer here?”

“I would be lying if that thought hadn’t occurred to me when the offer came across my desk.” The other man agreed, smiling wryly. “Between that and us being in the same timezone, I guess I can suck it up and deal with a cushy desk job for the next few months.” 

Cody leaned over the gearshift and kissed Obi-Wan again, this time a little more softly and tenderly. “Thanks for coming to pick me up.” 

“Of course, are you hungry? We could stop and get some breakfast on the way back to the house?”

“I could eat. Then I’d like to take a tour of your shower and maybe see about sweet-talking you into giving me a tour of your bed.” Cody teased with a wicked gleam in his eyes. “I think you said the kids were both going to be in school today?”

“I think that can be arranged. We should have the house to ourselves for most of the day.” Obi-Wan agreed with an equally sly look as he turned around in his seat to make sure no one was behind them and started to back the car up out of the parking space.

“We could always skip breakfast and jump immediately into the whole shower thing, you could join me and I’ll even wash your back.”

“Nuh huh, you’re going to need all the energy you can get. I’ve got two months' worth of sexual frustration to work through with you.” 

“...you might just be the death of me yet, _cyare._ ” The dark-haired man breathed, voice just a tad strangled as he wrestled with all manner of ideas and thoughts of what would entail. Obi-Wan wasn’t the only one who suffered through the distance and loneliness of their relationship.

“Only a little death, you’ll survive.” Obi-Wan looked as pleased as a tooka who’d gotten both a mouse and a saucer of milk. 

“That remains to be seen but I’m game to find out if you are.” 

“I have total faith in you, Commander Fett, but I am definitely game as well.” The redhead said as he slanted a mischievous glance Cody’s way. 

In the end, they opted to grab some fast-food instead of getting a sit-down breakfast, and contrary to Cody’s previous impatience, he found his appetite was voracious by the time the smell of grease and artery-clogging sausage filled the car.

Once they reached Obi-Wan’s house, they both scarfed down their breakfasts, and then Cody dragged Obi-Wan with him into the bathroom as they left a small trail of clothes in their wake leading from the bedroom and into the bathroom in between heated and passionate kisses. As promised, he washed Obi-Wan’s back and then promptly sank down onto his knees and proceeded to show him just how much he’d missed him by sucking him off. 

By the time they finished, the poor water tank was nearly down to the dredges of hot water but both men were freshly cleaned and fell into Obi-Wan’s bed with a towel draped over the pillows to protect them as they lay there making out lazily. 

All in all, it was a pretty great way to spend a morning and once they worked out some of their initial sexual frustration, lunchtime had come and gone so Obi-Wan slapped together a couple of sandwiches and they both settled down at the kitchen table to eat at a quick pace. 

As they ate, they talked and caught up on all the minutiae of their days that never seemed to come up during their video and phone calls. Cody broke out his phone and showed him some pictures and videos of his trip back home to Mandalore. 

Obi-Wan had seen some of them but apparently he’d taken a lot more footage than he’d shared. He’d no doubt tried to squeeze as many memories of home as he’d been able to on that short two weeks of leave. 

“Oh, that reminds me. I have something for you.” Cody said suddenly and hopped to his feet as he hurried back into Obi-Wan’s room where he’d dropped his bag. He returned less than a minute later with something lumpy in his hands. “My mother has been trying to learn how to knit, I told you that right?”

“Correct, I saw the picture of that sweater she knitted you for your birthday.” It had been a misshapen monstrosity with one sleeve almost four centimeters longer than the other. Cody had dutifully posed in it despite the fact it had been ugly as sin and probably two sizes too big for him. He’d been smiling broadly in that photo as he’d stood there with an arm around his mother who looked as pleased as punch both to have her son home and at the chance to display her somewhat dubious knitting skills. 

“Well, she’s gotten slightly better and decided you should have this,” Cody said thrusting that amorphous bundle of something. It took Obi-Wan a second to realize it was supposed to be a hat, one with ear flaps that were just a little uneven though compared to the sweater it looked like an improvement. The yarn was surprisingly soft and plush to the touch and was a gradation of blues and greens. 

“One of my _bavodu'e_ handmakes the yarn and dyes it from wool they gather from their herd of merlies. So Nau’buir has plenty of yarn lying about which means she’s bound and determined to apparently make something for everyone in the entire clan.” 

“And that includes me?” Obi-Wan asked, both strangely pleased and surprised by that knowledge. He’d spoken with Nau’ri Fett a couple of times via video chat while Cody had been home and she’d struck him as a warm and welcoming person and a mother who obviously loved her family with every iota of her being. In comparison to her husband Jango, who had been much more reserved and damned near hard to read during those calls, she’d outright invited Obi-Wan as well as the rest of his family to come to see them if they ever found themselves down in the southern hemisphere. She’d said that with a significant look aimed directly at Cody and much to Obi-Wan’s amusement he’d started to turn red from the tips of his ears downwards. 

“Apparently so. Not saying they’re going to start swearing adoption vows just yet but definitely an honorary member if you want.” Cody teased with something soft and warm in his eyes as he took the hat from Obi-Wan so he could tug it down on top of his head. It was too big and immediately slid down over his forehead and nearly obscured his vision. 

“I would be honored. Oh dear, that may be a problem.” 

“Easily fixed, she made me one as well and it was too big as well.” Cody said and reached out to pull the strings and the ear flaps back so he could tighten them around the back of Obi-Wan’s head which added some more tension to the front and tightened the fit enough that it wasn’t in his eyes anymore.

“Well, please thank her for me, I will definitely get plenty of use out of it this winter.” 

“I will, though I should warn you, she’s made it abundantly clear that the next time I go home, she would like me to bring you as well if you can get the time off.” That was said with a note of uncertainty and Cody made a valiant attempt to look nonchalant as he finished tying off the yarn strings and tugged the now properly fitting cap down into place. “I told her we’d talk about it but…”

“I’d love to go.” Obi-Wan cut in abruptly and the brief flicker of relief on Cody’s face told him how much his boyfriend had been stewing over the invite and the uncertainty of maybe pushing him too fast into something he wasn’t comfortable with. 

“Alright, I’ll start working out the details.” Obi-Wan could hear the roughness in the other man’s voice and reached out to cup his cheek tenderly. 

“I’ll look forward to it.”

“You say that now, wait until you are exposed to the full force of my clan. You might run screaming into the hills and if I had an ounce of common sense, I would join you.” 

“I think you may be overreacting just a little bit, my dear.” Obi-Wan tried to reassure him with a fondly exasperated look. 

“I’ve taken exactly two people home to meet my family. Neither one of those relationships worked out.” 

“Well, I’m made of sterner stuff than that and I do have prior knowledge of how Mandalorians tend to be around family.” 

“One of them was _Mando_. Barely. He was from the Capital.” That was admitted with a trace of something that bordered on embarrassed, as though he was mildly ashamed to have dated someone from Sundari. It was an attitude Obi-Wan had seen time and again amongst the various people of Mandalore. Those from the harsh North tended to look down upon their Southern neighbors as being soft and weak-willed while those from in and around the capital tended to view those from the North as violent savages nearly on the same level as those from such violent splinter groups as the Death Watch.

“You dated a New Mandalorian?” Obi-Wan looked as though he couldn’t decide if he was amused or surprised and Cody grimaced ever so slightly looking rather aggrieved. 

“I was young and dumb, that’s my excuse. I thought him being _Mando_ would mean we could overcome the whole trying to date a civilian thing but he didn’t get it. Couldn’t understand why I was still fighting even after the war ended. My family was scandalized as I’m sure you can imagine. Nau’buir tried to make him feel welcome but well...Jango Fett doesn’t have a very high opinion of the New Mandalorians and didn’t pull any punches, let’s put it that way.”

“I wonder what he must think of me, a civilian and an outsider.” Obi-Wan murmured more to himself.

“But you were a soldier. You took up arms when your country needed you and you may have retired from the battlefield but you did it for your family. He will respect all of those things.” Cody said with absolute conviction in his voice. “You epitomize a lot of the _Resol'nare_ without even trying or thinking about it. It’s uh...part of what drew me to you in the first place.” The tips of Cody’s ears were starting to go a little pink with embarrassment. 

“Oh, really? Are you saying I’d make an okay Mandalorian, Cody?” He couldn’t help but tease just a little. 

“With some work, I think you could manage. I guess I wouldn’t be embarrassed about bringing you home to meet my mother.” The other man said deadpan which earned him a laugh.

“Seems to me you’re already planning on doing that.” 

“Why, so I am. Guess I’d better work on teaching you some more _Mando’a._ ” Cody teased right back with a soft look on his face. 

“I think I know enough to get by. Like this… _ni kar'tayli gar darasuum._.” That was the first time either one of them had said those words out loud. At least, in quite so many words. Cody had occasionally slipped in a fond _cyare_ here or there just as Obi-Wan sometimes called him love or my dear. But neither one of them had outright said ‘I love you’ fully in either language. 

Obi-Wan witnessed the effect that statement had on his lover, the way his eyes went wide with a mixture of surprise which quickly melted into delight and then something warm and soft. 

“I love you too.” He finally copied in Basic even if he found the words weren’t nearly as impactful in his mind. In _Mando’a_ it meant something more akin to holding that person in your heart forever which felt more meaningful and Obi-Wan had somehow beaten him to it. Cody leaned forward and kissed the other man softly and that kiss slowly grew more heated until they were full-on making out at the kitchen table. 

Something that seemed to occur to both of them because they eventually broke off the kiss. “Bedroom?”

“Definitely.” Obi-Wan agreed a little breathlessly as he climbed to his feet. He stacked up their empty plates and deposited them into the dishwasher and grabbed his phone only to belatedly realize he had a couple of missed texts. He’d been so wrapped up with Cody he hadn’t even heard them come in and when he glanced at them, a laugh unwittingly escaped him. 

“What?” 

“Apparently both Ahsoka and Anakin have opted to stay over with some friends' houses tonight. Ahsoka claims she’s cramming with Bariss and Anakin is staying with a ‘friend’ which translates to Padmé I’m assuming.”

“You have the best siblings ever,” Cody stated with a laugh. “You realize if this was my brothers, they would probably be trying to find every way to cockblock us as humanly possible just because they are miserable _chakaare_.” 

“They are pretty great, aren’t they.” 

“Guess that means we can be as loud as we want too.” Cody purred as he pulled Obi-Wan in the direction of the bedroom.

“Why, Commander Fett, are you saying you’re going to make me scream?” 

“That or die trying.” They’d reached the bedroom by now and Cody skimmed his hands up under the hem of the shirt Obi-Wan had pulled on for propriety’s sake and tugged it up over his head. The damned hat went with it but neither man seemed to care overly much as it was dropped on the floor behind them. 

“I do love a man on a mission.” 

“ _Oya._ ” The Mandalorian soldier murmured as he leaned in to capture Obi-Wan’s mouth once more in another heated kiss and that was the last thing either one of them managed to say for a while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Mando'a**  
>  _Bavodu'e_ \- Aunt/Uncle though in this case it's an Aunt  
>  _Chakaare_ \- Plural of everyone's favorite Mando term of abuse, in this case jerks or bastards  
>  _Cyare_ \- Beloved  
>  _Mando’a_ \- Mandalorian language  
>  _Mando/Mando'ade_ \- Mandalorian and it's plural Mandalorians  
>  _Ni kar'tayli gar darasuum_ \- I know and hold you in my heart forever aka a way of saying I love you. Shamelessly ripped from the RepComm books and may not be grammatically correct.   
> _Oya_ \- General Mando term of approval  
>  _Resol'nare_ \- Six tenants of the daily Mandalorian life. Yes, I know wearing armor is one of those tenants, no I don't know how the hell that works in this modern AU, shhhh don't ask questions I have no answers to. LOL  
>  _Shabuir_ \- Jerk, but extremely insulting and I would prolly equate it more to say calling someone an asshole  
>  _Shebs_ \- Butt or backside.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm too lazy to translate the super basic smattering of Mando'a in this chapter but I will make an effort if I use any words that require more translation than your super basic Mando'a often prevalent in fics. I'm lazy and it's late, sorry. :/ Do I know this AU has probably been done to death? Absolutely, do I care? Not at all, I'm having a blast and I hope you will enjoy the ride with me. I've been screaming about this AU for days over on [tumblr](https://bylightofdawn.tumblr.com) where I'm living my best troll life and constantly babbling on about CodyWan and various other SW pairings. Feel free to come shout at me about all things SW.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [When We Were Young](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26829340) by [Tate_The_Great](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tate_The_Great/pseuds/Tate_The_Great)




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